Paris Olympics: Hong Kong mixed doubles pair’s draw leaves coach Li smiling but cautious
- Wong Chun-ting and Doo Hoi-kem have been placed in the lower half of the draw, away from top seeds Wong Chuqin and Sun Yingsha of China
The city’s mixed-doubles table tennis pair have been handed a favourable draw at the Paris Olympics, but head coach Li Ching remained cautious and said the players needed to get into the zone fast and early.
Placed in the bottom half of the draw, Wong Chun-ting and Doo Hoi-kem managed to avoid top seeds Wong Chuqin and Sun Yingsha of China.
The Hongkongers, who are in the same half as Japanese No 2 seeds Tomokazu Harimoto and Hina Hayata, will play world No 12 Nandor Ecseki and Dora Madarasz of Hungary in the opening round.
Li was seen smiling as the draw was unveiled in a room filled with almost 200 team officials and journalists, before he shook hands with men’s team coach Liu Guodong.
“I am satisfied with the racecard,” he said. “It’s important, just like in horse racing; I hope they make it out of the gate fast.”
