DOHA: The first Olympic table tennis competition ever held on African soil has crowned its champions, and it will be remembered as one of the most open, unpredictable and historic in Youth Olympic history.
Japan’s Ryuusei Kawakami completed a golden double at the Youth Olympic Games Dakar 2026, adding the men’s singles title to the mixed doubles gold he won earlier in the week.
Chinese Taipei’s Chen Min-Hsin took the women’s crown to cap a remarkable run, and Colombia’s Emanuel Otalvaro made history with a silver medal that no player from his country had ever come close to.
Six different NOCs won medals across the three events. From Japan and Chinese Taipei to Korea Republic, Singapore and Hong Kong, China, and all the way to Colombia, medals were shared across continents, styles and table tennis traditions.
For the first time since the inaugural Youth Olympic Games at Singapore 2010, China did not feature on the podium, a reflection of how the depth of the youth game continues to grow around the world, and of a new generation ready to compete with anyone.
