by Ian Marshall, Editor
Yu Heyi (4,274 points) continues to lead the Boys’ Standings with as previously colleague Xiang Peng (3,800 points) in second position; next in line is Yuan Licen, the player Kakeru Sone beat at the semi-final stage in China. He moves from no.5 to no.3 (3,136 points) and is one place ahead of Xu Yingbin who drops one place to no.4 (2,986 points).
The efforts of Kakeru Sone and Yuan Licen in Taicang rewarded; it is the same for Liu Yebo, the runner up and for Cao Yantao, the player he overcame in the penultimate round. Liu Yebo, making his first ITTF World Junior Circuit appearance of the year, enters the listings at no.28 (980 points), Cao Yantao advances from no.34 to no.13 (1,456 points).
Iran’s Amin Ahmadian (2,282 points) and China’s Kuang Li (2,272 points) followed by Singapore’s Pang Yew En Koen (1,924 points) complete the top ten names.
Meanwhile, on the Girls’ Standings, Shi Xunyao (5,060 points), the winner on home soil at the China Junior and Cadet Open, maintains her top place, being now clear of the field. She is pursued by colleagues Qian Tianyi (3,530 points), Huang Fanzhen (3,500 points) and Zhang Binyue (2,924 points); all retain their previous status. A similar situation applies to the next two names in the order of merit. Poland’s Anna Wegrzyn remains in the no.5 spot (2,498 points), followed by Yukari Sugasawa (2,475 points).
However, immediately below there is a change. Chen Yi, beaten in the Taicang final by Shi Xunyao, moves from no.13 to no.7 (2,284 points); the elevation means a drop of one place for Puerto Rico’s Adriana Diaz (1,925 points) and Lucie Gauthier of France (1.922 points). Japan’s Haruna Ojio, who experienced defeat when facing Shi Xunyao at the semi-final stage in China, completes the top ten names. She moves from no.21 to no.10 (1,678 points); China’s Kuai Man, beaten in the counterpart semi-final, enters the list at no.50 (616 points).
A total of 16 boys and 16 girls will qualify for the end of programme ITTF World Junior Circuit Finals. However in each gender, a national association is limited to a maximum of two players, each continent is eligible for a minimum of one representative as is the host nation. In addition in order to qualify a player must compete in at least two continents.
