by Ian Marshall, Editor
At the close of play, the names of those in each event who would join the seeds in the main draw were known.
Men’s Singles
…………Ibrahima Diaw beat Belgium’s David Comeliau (11-8, 11-7, 11-4) to remain unbeaten; thus he secured first place in his group and became the only player from Senegal to qualify for the main draw at either an ITTF World Tour or ITTF Challenge Series Tournament.
…………A total of 20 players from the Korea Republic competed in the qualification stage; each of the 16 groups possessed at least one player from that nation; 10 gained main draw places – Hwang Jinha, Park Gyeongtae, Seo Hongchan, Park Jeongwoo, Oh Minseo, Cheon Minhyuck, Cho Jaejun, Kim Jongwon, Seo Hyundeok, Jung Younghun.
…………Yanapong Panagitgun beat Korea Republic’s Cho Sangyeon (11-9, 11-3, 4-11, 12-10) and thus secured first place in his group; the only player from the host nation competing in the qualification stage to book a main draw place.
Women’s Singles
…………French teenagers Isa Cok, Camille Lutz and Prithika Pavade, only 14 years old, all reserved main draw places.
…………Runner up on the ITTF World Tour in 2016 in Belarus, Japan’s Mizuki Morizono was the biggest casualty; she was beaten in her concluding group stage match by Chinese Taipei’s Yu Hsiu-Ting (11-6, 11-1, 11-3), a player with no current world ranking. The effect was third place for Mizuki Morizono, top spot for Yu Hsiu-Ting.
…………Korea Republic’s Jung Dana and Yu Arin, as well as India Kaushani Nath and Japan’s Mitsuho Kimura, all players with no world ranking finished in first places in their respective groups.
Men’s Doubles
…………Korea Republic enjoyed notable success in the preliminary round; three pairs qualified for the main draw – Baek Hogyun and Seo Hyondeok, Cho Jaejun in partnership with Jung Younghun, Cheon Minhyuck in harness with Park Jeongwoo.
Women’s Doubles
…………Hong Kong prospered in the preliminary round; Karen Lee Hoi Man and Wong Chin Yau alongside Chau Wing Sze and Lee Ka Yee all reserved main draw places.
Under 21 Men’s Singles
…………Not listed on the current under 21 men’s world rankings, first places in their respective groups were achieved by Korea Republic’s Kwak Yubin and Belgium’s Adrien Rassenfosse alongside Chinese Taipei’s Tai Ming-Wei and Li Hsin-Yu.
Under 21 Women’s Singles
…………Jinnipa Sawettabut flew the flag for the host nation, she beat Joanna Sung of the United States (11-2, 11-7, 11-5), the highest rated player in the group, to secure first place and progress to the main draw.
