Taichung Para Open 2023

Taichung Para Open 2023
Quotes of the Day
Photo: Chiu Taiwei

Friday 21 st July: CEPAS Ander (Spain)
Q. Is this your first time to Taiwan? What’s your impression of Taiwan?
It’s my first time to Taiwan. I arrived in Taiwan few days ago, and I also went to the
tourmanent in New Taipei. It’s really hot here and I don’t get used to the
temparature. But the cultrue, the views and everything surprise me, they are very
amazing and interesting.
Q. What made you come this far to participate in the tournament?
I would like to get the qualification for Paralympics in Paris. It’s important to play two
tournaments in a row, in New Taipei few days ago and these four days in Taichung.
Because I may get more points in these two tournaments, which will help a lot to get
the chance to Paris.
Q. How do you feel participating in this tournament?
I’m pretty nervous about it because I really want to get the chance to Paris. I know I
need to deal with the pressure well. I have psychologist in Spain who helps me deal
with all the pressure and manage these feelings from the matches.

Friday 21 st July: CHEN Po-Yen (Chinese Taipei)
Q. How do you feel participating in the tournament in your hometown?
I feel very happy and excited to participate in the tournament here. Because it is
much easier for my family to come and watch me play.
Q. You faced your teammate in the first match of this tournament, how do you feel
about it?
I’m actually happy that my teammate and I can compete with each other in the
international tournament. Although I showed him mercy for a bit, I still won in three
straight sets.
Q. What are your expectations for the tournament since you already got the
qualification for Paralympics in Paris?
Getting more points and higher ranking are my expectations for the tournament.
Besides, it’s always exciting for me to compete with the good players from different
countries and have more experiences. I can learn some skills from them or be
familiar with their strategies. I believe that the more I know about my opponents, the
better I will defeat them. So I’m not afraid of facing the opponents whose rankings
are higher than mine.

Friday 21st July: Lei Li Na (Australia)
Q: How do you feel about participating in this table tennis tournament in Taiwan?
Ans: I feel great about participating in this table tennis tournament in Taiwan. The
people here are very friendly, and the organization of the event is top-notch.
Q: Have you faced any challenges during the tournament, and how did you
overcome them?
Ans: Yes, I have faced a challenge during the tournament. After just finishing another
competition in Taipei without any rest, coming here to race can be a little tiring. To
overcome this, I focused on getting enough rest between matches and maintaining a
positive mindset to perform at my best.
Q: What do you think are your strengths as a table tennis player?
Ans: As a table tennis player, I believe my strengths lie in having a strong mindset and
dedicating a lot of time to practice. These attributes help me stay focused, handle
pressure well, and continuously improve my skills on the table.
Q: What do you enjoy the most about playing table tennis professionally?
Ans: What I enjoy the most about playing table tennis professionally is the wellorganized
arrangements and the smooth flow of everything. It allows me to fully
focus on my game and perform at my best without any distractions.

Friday 21st July: VAUTIER Flora (France)
1. How do you feel about participating in this table tennis tournament in Taiwan?
Ans: Everything is very good, but the weather is so hot. One thing, in particular, is the
size of the race, it's quite big. I am happy that I am able to meet many players here.
2. Have you faced any challenges during the tournament, and how did you
overcome them?
Ans: Yes, I have faced some challenges during the tournament. I really want to win
every game I play, and this desire puts a little bit of pressure on me. To deal with the
stress, my solution is to simply ignore it and focus on playing my best.
3.What do you think are your strengths as a table tennis player?
Ans: As a table tennis player, my strengths include strong eye contact, aggressive
play, adaptability, and precise control of my movements.
4. What do you enjoy the most about playing table tennis professionally?
Ans: What I enjoy the most about playing table tennis professionally is challenging
myself and seeing how far I can go.

Saturday 22nd July - ADJAL Yorick (France)
Q: Why did you decide to participate in this tournament? What do you think about it?
I needed points, practice, and experience.
It is organized better than the one in Taipei, and the food is also better, but the conditions inside the venue a
re really bad. The air conditioning was blowing directly at my table during my first match. There was a lot
of wind and it was impossible to play.
Q: You've attended a lot of tournaments this year. How do you manage your travels?
I start planning and preparing early and adapt during my travels. I call for assistance as needed. It's hard, bu
t possible.
Q: How long have you been playing table tennis? What do you enjoy the most about this sport?
I started playing six years ago and I joined the French team two years ago. I like the pressure, the tension, a
nd the intensity. I like the focus and the tactic involved in the sport. Table tennis is special to me and I like
it for the moment. I want to perform and become better and better.

Saturday 22 nd July: AKBAR Komet (Indonesia)
Q. On which day did you arrive in Taiwan and how do you feel?
I feel very happy of our arrival in Taiwan on the 14 th of July. I participated in the
tournament in New Taipei first. However, coming to Taichung for the tourmanent is
the biggest purpose .
Q. What are the goals and expectations for the tournament?
Of course I wish to win the competition. There’re so many good and young players in
class 10, but I will do my best to defeat them. Also, I want to get much more points in
the competition for Paralympic in Paris. Hopefully I will have the qualification by the
end of the year.
Q. Your teammate David Jacobs passed away few months ago, how do you feel and
deal with it?
It’s definitely a sad news for me and all the Indonesia players. He’s not only an
amazng player, but also one of the leaders of Indonesia team. But life must go on, I
believe his spirit is still beside me and accompany me to all over the world.

Saturday 22nd July: LUNDBACK Ingela (SWE)
Q. What do you think about your performance today?
Up and down, wasn’t satisfied in the semi. I didn’t play as good as I think, but it’s very hard and it’s
terrible for me for Europe. But I did my best.
Q. What’s your plan after Taichung para open?
Going home, training camp and then is Europe championship.
Q. As we know you’ve been elected as one of the members in ITTF Athletes’ Commission. How do yo
u strike the balance between player and commission member?
( 沒 有 回 答 到 問 題 )
->How do you feel about being elected as one of the members in ITTF Athletes’ Commission?
I think it’s great to be in the commission. And we are now asking every countries what they want to chan
ge in the future. It’s an honor to be there. I want to have changes so it’s going to be better for everyone.
And we’re having meeting in two days now so I’m going home now.

Saturday 22nd July TIAN Shiaw Wen (Chinese Taipei)
The match was intense as Chinese Taipei's player, Tian Xiaowen, was competing against
Australian player Yang Qian. However, during the fifth game, an accident occurred, making
the situation tense. Tian Xiaowen tried to save a ball but unfortunately lost her balance,
causing her to fall and injure her left hand, making it impossible for her to continue playing.
Realizing the seriousness of the situation, medical personnel were immediately called to
help. They quickly brought a stretcher to the center of the court and noticed that Tian
Xiaowen's hand might be fractured. The medical team took urgent measures and rushed Tian
Xiaowen to a nearby hospital for treatment.

Sunday 23 rd July: SEOANE ALCARAZ Alberto (Spain)
Q. Spain is far from Taiwan, what makes you want to participate in the
tournament?
It’s very important that there are two tournaments in a row in Taiwan, first in New
Taipei and then in Taichung. That’s why we made the long trip.
Q. What do you think about the tournament in general?
There are some positive points: The hotel is really amazing, the volunteers are very
attentive, the people in general are very friendly, and the organization of the
tournament is good. There are also a few negative points: The air conditioner kept
affecting us during the competition, and I don’t really like the food here.
Q. You won the golden medal of Men’s Singles Class 6 in New Taipei. But you
couldn’t enter the finals in Taichung, how do you feel and do you think there’re any
differences between these two competitions?
I have not been able to feel comfortable during the individual competition. Maybe
it’s the different table (Nittaku table v.s. Donic table), maybe it’s the higher humidity
which affected my grip on the racket, or maybe it’s just my mentality. It was
dissapointing that I didn’t win a medal in the singles, but I will try to focus on winning
the doubles.

Sunday 23 rd July – HU Ming-Fu & SU Jing-Sian (Chinese Taipei)
Q: Why did you start playing table tennis?
SU Jing-Sian: I originally played tennis but stopped because of my hand. I thought
table tennis would be similar, so I decided to try. I then gradually fell in love with the
sport. This was in fifth grade by the way.
HU Ming-Fu: At the start, it was hard for disabled people to play sports. One day, I
went to play pool and there was a tennis table next to the pool table. I tried playing
and found out that it was very fun. When Taiwan held its first sports tournament for
disabled people, I signed up and to my surprise, I won third place. I started playing
seriously and participated in many tournaments.
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Q: What do you like about table tennis?
SU Jing-Sian: I enjoy table tennis because it is very versatile. There are a lot of
variations in the rotation of the ball, and you must think about which techniques to
use to effectively control the ball.
HU Ming-Fu: Table tennis changed my life. It influenced my perspective, my
knowledge, and the people I know. I met a lot of people through playing table tennis,
who won’t look down at me for being disabled. That is my favorite thing about
playing table tennis.
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Q: You are quite far apart in age. Have you faced any problems while playing
together? How did you overcome those problems?
SU Jing-Sian: We had some issues with movement. He (HU Ming-Fu) has a bad leg so
he can’t reach the balls that are far away. Other than that, I actually think we work
quite well together. He uses his extensive experience in the field to tell me how to
play in the court, how to control the ball, and how to stay calm.
HU Ming-Fu: We only started partnering recently. The competition rules changed for
men’s doubles so now a class 10 athlete must pair with a class 8 athlete. We are still
trying to get used to playing with each other in these two matches today. I believe
that given more time, we will play better and better together. I can rely on his agility,
and he can rely on my stability.

Q: (To HU Ming-Fu) When do you plan to retire?
HU Ming-Fu: I originally retired in 2008. But due to the competition rule change, they
needed me to come back, and so I did. I will keep playing as long as I am healthy and
not injured.
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Q: Do you get stressed during the tournaments? How do you overcome it?
SU Jing-Sian: We want to win, so there is some stress, but it also motivates us to
grow and improve. We only focus on the current moment and don’t think about the
mistakes too much. We communicate and cooperate with each other. We try our
hardest to win every ball, every match.
HU Ming-Fu: What he said. We try our best to cooperate and encourage each other
during the tournaments.

Saturday 23 rd July: CHOY Hing Lam (Hong Kong)
Q. You were a formidable athlete in the past, but you stopped competing for a lengthy 8-year
period in 2014. Why did you take such a long break?
Because balancing work and playing sports in Hong Kong was a challenging task, I decided to focus
on settling my career first before returning to the sport.
Q. After such a long time away from the game, how do you feel about returning to the court?
I'm very excited! I really enjoy the feeling of competition, and so far, I've been performing quite
well in the current matches. Therefore, I'm thrilled to be back in the competition.
Q. What aspect of table tennis do you enjoy the most?
I love the competitive aspect of playing against opponents and striving to win the match. That's
my favorite part.
Q. What are your goals for this competition?
Actually, this competition has already exceeded my expectations. I won a silver medal in the
individual singles event, and I hope to achieve a medal in the doubles event in the afternoon as
well.