TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwanese table tennis star Lin Yun-ju (林昀儒) will face Croatian veteran Gacina Andrej on Tuesday (July 30) at 5 p.m. Taiwan time, aiming for a Olymics spot in the round of 16.
The match marks their seventh encounter, with Lin winning all previous matches. Their last meeting was at the WTT Contender Almaty 2023, where Lin triumphed 3-2 after a five-set battle.
In Lin's first match of the Men's Singles this year, Lin defeated Puerto Rican player Brian Afanador, ranked 75th in the world, with a 4-1 victory to advance to the round of 32. Despite this success, Lin and Chen Szu-yu (陳思羽) faced a setback in the Mixed Doubles quarterfinals, when the world's top-ranked Chinese pair, Wang Chuqin (王楚欽) and Sun Yingsha (孫穎莎) made a comeback and eliminated them from the competition.
This year marks Lin's second Olympic challenge. Four years ago, he debuted at the Tokyo Olympics, advancing to the Men's Singles semifinals before losing to China's Fan Zhendong (樊振東), ultimately finishing fourth. Partnering with Cheng I-ching (鄭怡靜) in the Mixed Doubles, Lin secured a bronze medal, becoming the first Taiwanese player to win an Olympic table tennis medal.
