TORONTO (July 19, 2023) – Table Tennis Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee have announced the table tennis roster for the 2023 Pan Am Games in Santiago.

The Team Canada table tennis athletes for the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games are:

athlete
Ivy Liao (Vancouver, BC)
Edward Ly (Montreal, QC)
Simeon Martin (Montreal, QC)
Eugene Wang (Aurora, ON)
Jessie Xu (Toronto, ON)
Mo Zhang (Vancouver, BC)

The six athletes earned a spot on Team Canada based on their performances at the Pan American Games Selection Tournament held June 2-4 in Mississauga, Ontario. No fewer than 32 athletes competed in the event in hopes of becoming one of the six athletes who will represent Canada at the Santiago 2023 Games.

The group is made up of a mix of seasoned veterans and newcomers who will be competing in the Major Games for the first time. Four-time Olympian Mo Zhang will be at the Pan American Games for the third time, looking to add to her three medals won at the Lima 2019 Games, including gold in mixed doubles. Zhang’s mixed doubles partner in Lima was three-time Olympian Eugene Wang, who also won bronze in men’s singles in Lima 2019 and Toronto 2015.

“After winning the mixed doubles tournament at the recent Pan American Games, I want to make sure I can defend that title,” said Eugene Wang. Team Canada will be training hard for these games and I’m hoping to get a better individual result after winning bronze at the last two Pan American Games. »

Making her debut on Team Canada, young Toronto native Jessie Xu is the 2022 and 2023 Canada U19 and U15 Individuals Champion. This will be her first senior competition and major games after winning three gold medals at the 2023 Canada Winter Games earlier this year.

“I am so proud and excited to represent Team Canada. I can’t wait to play for our country. “For the past four years, I’ve pushed and trained myself and received a lot of support from my coaches, parents and teammates with the aim of securing a spot on the 2023 Pan American Games team,” said Xu. I’m proud of our team and I know we’ll come to these games with great potential. »

Table tennis mixed doubles will gain prominence at the Santiago 2023 Games, as medalists and silver medalists will receive a direct bye to the Paris 2024 Olympics, and athletes competing in the individual events will be able to accumulate world ranking points to be used towards Olympic qualification.

“Our athletes will be excited to attend the Pan American Games in Santiago,” said Adham Sharara, President of Table Tennis Canada. Our men’s and women’s teams rank fifth in America. The team consists of a good mix of experienced players and very young athletes. I hope our young players will learn from their more experienced teammates and raise Canada’s level on the international stage in the future. »

The table tennis events will take place from October 29th to November 5th (Days 9 to 16) at the Centro de Entrenamiento Olímpico.

“As Team Canada’s Chef de Mission, I’m excited to give a warm welcome to our talented table tennis team, where seasoned veterans and promising newcomers are ready to storm Chile,” said Christine Girard, Team Canada’s Chef de Mission at the Santiago 2023 Games. The raw talent of our newcomers gears up for the Pan American Games. »

The Team Canada table tennis coaches at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games are:

Trainer
Maxime Surprenant (Montreal, QC) – men’s coach
JianRen Wei (Vancouver, BC) – Women’s Coach

Before all selected athletes are named to Team Canada, they must be approved by the Canadian Olympic Committee’s Team Selection Committee once selections have been submitted by all national sports organizations.

For the most current list of Team Canada athletes nominated for the Santiago 2023 Games, click here.

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MEDIA CONTACTS

Thorsten Gohl, Vice President
Table Tennis Canada
Such. : (867) 373-2101
Email: thor@ttcanada.ca

Tara MacBournie, Sports Communications Manager for Team Canada at the 2023 Santiago Games
Canadian Olympic Committee
Cell. : 647-522-8328
Email: tmacbournie@olympique.ca