- Defeat against Japan: Table tennis women fight for bronze
Despite another outstanding performance by Olympic debutante Annett Kaufmann, the German women's table tennis team missed out on the final in the team event. Kaufmann, Yuan Wan, and Xiaona Shan had to settle for a 1:3 defeat against the heavily favored Japanese team in the semifinals. Germany will now face South Korea in the bronze medal match on Saturday (10:00 AM), who lost 0:3 to top favorite China in the other semifinal.
Japan will now try to break China's dominance in the final. China has won all table tennis team events at the Olympics since 2008, both men's and women's.
Kaufmann's phenomenal play, who led the German team to the quarterfinals with two wins against India, couldn't prevent the defeat against Japan. The 18-year-old won the first singles match against Miwa Harimoto, the world number eight, 3:0, showcasing world-class performance. After her fifth win in the fifth match of the team event, the teenager covered her face in disbelief. The player from SV DJK Kolbermoor had only joined the squad a few weeks before the Olympics due to Ying Han's withdrawal.
However, it wasn't enough for a place in the final. Wan lost to Miu Hirano 0:3, and Shan lost to Harimoto 0:3 in the subsequent singles matches. Earlier, Wan and Shan lost the doubles match against Hina Hayata/Miu Hirano 1:3.
Bad luck with injuries in the German team
Table tennis legend Timo Boll, who retired from international play after the men's team lost in the quarterfinals against Sweden, knew the task ahead for the German women's team was tough. "A win against Japan would be the biggest upset of the Olympics," Boll had said.
Reaching the semifinals was already a great achievement for the depleted women's team. Nina Mittelham, the highest-ranked German player in the world rankings, was again absent due to a herniated disc injury sustained in the second round of the singles event in Paris. Ying Han, another top German player, couldn't travel to Paris due to an Achilles tendon injury.
Despite the absence of key players due to injuries, the resilient German women's team pushed their limits, with Annett Kaufmann leading the charge in France. Regardless, they fell short in their bid to dethrone the dominant Japanese team in the semifinals.
