Competing in men’s singles class 5, Tommy Urhaug, gold medallist at the London 2012 Paralympic Games beat Indonesia’s Agus Sutanto (10-12, 11-4, 12-14, 11-9, 11-4), followed by success in opposition to Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yen-Hung (11-9, 9-11, 11-4, 11-8).

“I have never played against Agus, he was really good. The second thing is that I wasn’t used to the floor in the hall. That’s why it took me a while to adapt and start playing my game. I knew that I had the match under control but he really he wasn’t an easy opponent.” Tommy Urhaug

Success for Tommy Urhaug and like many leading players on duty in Olomouc, the 2019 Czech Para Open is a stepping stone for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

“There are still a few things which I could do better. My backspin could be faster and more aggressive. However, practice makes perfect and I know I still have some time to show my best.” Tommy Urhaug

Aware of competition

Good form from Tommy Urhaug, it was the same from Poland’s Patryk Chojnowski in men’s singles class 10; he accounted for Chinese Taipei’s Su Jin Sian (11-3, 11-6, 11-8) and Japan’s Nariaki Kakita. Likewise, the host nation’s Ivan Karabec was in form; he overcame Spain’s Aders Cepas (11-4, 11-4, 10-12, 11-4) and Indonesia’s Komet Akbar (11-9, 11-7, 7-11, 9-11, 11-7)

“I am here to win. However, recently I played against Ivan Karabec and I won just 3-2 in games; that’s why I never underestimate my opponent. The competition is big and my current health condition doesn’t allow me to train as much as the others. So I will participate in only in the Paralympics not Olympics.” Patryk Chojnowski

Recovery

Noteworthy performances, it was the same from Aleksandra Vasileva but in a different manner. She was beaten by Jelena Sisic in her opening match in women’s singles class 4 (11-7, 9-11, 11-9, 10-12) but then recovered to overcome Great Britain’s Megan Shackleton (14-12, 5-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-7).

“We meet with Megan quite often. I am really happy that I managed to win because it was really fatiguing not only physically but rather mentally. I work hard on training but you also need results from matches. Hopefully I will make it to Japan.” Aleksandra Vasilieva

Play in the men’s singles and women’s singles evets concludes on Saturday 7th September