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Fan Zhendong facts for kids

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Fan Zhendong
ITTF World Tour 2017 German Open Fan Zhendong 03.jpg
Personal information
Native name 樊振东
Nickname(s) "Xiao Pang" (Little Fatty)
Born (1997-01-22) 22 January 1997 (age 28)
Guangzhou, China
Playing style Right-handed, shakehand grip
Equipment(s) Butterfly Fan Zhendong ALC with DHS Hurricane 3 National (Blue Sponge) (FH, Black), Butterfly Dignics 09c (BH, Red)
Highest ranking 1 (April 2018)
Current ranking 2 (18 August 2024)
Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Weight 77 kg (170 lb)
Medal record
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 3 1 0
World Championships 9 2 2
World Cup / Cup Finals 9 2 0
Men's table tennis
Representing  China
Olympic Games
Gold 2020 Tokyo Team
Gold 2024 Paris Singles
Gold 2024 Paris Team
Silver 2020 Tokyo Singles
World Championships
Gold 2014 Tokyo Team
Gold 2016 Kuala Lumpur Team
Gold 2017 Düsseldorf Doubles
Gold 2018 Halmstad Team
Gold 2021 Houston Singles
Gold 2022 Chengdu Team
Gold 2023 Durban Singles
Gold 2023 Durban Doubles
Gold 2024 Busan Team
Silver 2015 Suzhou Doubles
Silver 2017 Düsseldorf Singles
Bronze 2015 Suzhou Singles
Bronze 2019 Budapest Mixed doubles
World Cup
Gold 2015 Dubai Team
Gold 2016 Saarbrücken Singles
Gold 2018 London Team
Gold 2018 Paris Singles
Gold 2019 Tokyo Team
Gold 2019 Chengdu Singles
Gold 2020 Weihai Singles
Gold 2023 Chengdu Mixed team
Silver 2015 Halmstad Singles
WTT Cup Finals
Gold 2021 Singapore Singles
Silver 2023 Doha Singles
ITTF World Tour Grand Finals
Gold 2017 Astana Singles
Gold 2019 Zhengzhou Singles
Gold 2019 Zhengzhou Doubles
Silver 2015 Lisbon Singles
Silver 2016 Doha Singles
Bronze 2013 Dubai Singles
Military World Games
Gold 2019 Wuhan Team
Gold 2019 Wuhan Singles
Gold 2019 Wuhan Doubles
Gold 2019 Wuhan Mixed doubles
Asian Games
Gold 2014 Incheon Team
Gold 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Singles
Gold 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Team
Gold 2022 Hangzhou Doubles
Gold 2022 Hangzhou Team
Silver 2014 Incheon Singles
Silver 2014 Incheon Doubles
Silver 2022 Hangzhou Singles
Asian Championships
Gold 2013 Busan Team
Gold 2015 Pattaya Team
Gold 2015 Pattaya Singles
Gold 2015 Pattaya Doubles
Gold 2015 Pattaya Mixed doubles
Gold 2017 Wuxi Team
Gold 2017 Wuxi Singles
Gold 2017 Wuxi Doubles
Gold 2019 Yogyakarta Team
Gold 2023 Pyeongchang Doubles
Gold 2023 Pyeongchang Team
Silver 2019 Yogyakarta Doubles
Silver 2023 Pyeongchang Singles
Bronze 2013 Busan Mixed doubles
Bronze 2019 Yogyakarta Singles
Asian Cup
Gold 2018 Yokohama Singles
Gold 2019 Yokohama Singles
Silver 2014 Wuhan Singles
Silver 2015 Jaipur Singles
Silver 2017 Ahmedabad Singles
East Asian Games
Gold 2013 Tianjin Singles
Gold 2013 Tianjin Team
Silver 2013 Tianjin Doubles
Youth Olympic Games
Gold 2014 Nanjing Singles
Gold 2014 Nanjing Mixed team
World Junior Championships
Gold 2012 Hyderabad Singles
Gold 2012 Hyderabad Mixed doubles
Gold 2012 Hyderabad Team
Silver 2012 Hyderabad Doubles
Asian Youth Games
Gold 2013 Nanjing Singles
Asian Junior Championships
Gold 2012 Jiangyin Singles
Gold 2012 Jiangyin Doubles
Gold 2012 Jiangyin Team

Fan Zhendong (Chinese: 樊振东; pinyin: Fán Zhèndōng) is a professional table tennis player from China. He was born on January 22, 1997. He joined the Chinese national team in 2012, becoming its youngest member.

Fan Zhendong quickly rose to fame. He became the youngest ITTF World Tour Champion. He also became the youngest World Table Tennis Champion. For over a decade, from December 2013 to December 2024, he was ranked among the top five players in the world. This is the longest streak in men's table tennis history!

Fan is the current Olympic gold medalist in men's singles. He won at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. This win made him one of only six male players to achieve a "Grand Slam" in table tennis. A Grand Slam means winning the singles titles at the Olympics, World Championships, and World Cup. He has also won two Olympic team gold medals. He is a two-time World Champion and a four-time World Cup champion in men's singles.

Fan's playing style is very exciting. He uses quick footwork and powerful shots called "loops" with both his forehand and backhand. Because of his strong build, fans and commentators sometimes call him "Little Fatty" (Chinese: 小胖, meaning "chubby boy"). He has many fans around the world, with over half a million followers on Chinese social media. In 2016, he won a special award called the ITTF Star Point Award. He was also nominated for the Best Male Star Award several times.

Fan Zhendong studied at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

How Fan Zhendong Plays

Fan Zhendong is a right-handed player who uses the shakehand grip. He plays an attacking style of table tennis. He uses his fast footwork and strong, well-placed loops to beat his opponents.

He uses special equipment to help him play his best. He uses a Butterfly Fan Zhendong ALC blade. For his forehand, he uses a black DHS Hurricane 3 neo National Blue Sponge rubber. For his backhand, he uses a red Butterfly Dignics 05 rubber. Butterfly, a famous table tennis brand, officially signed Fan Zhendong in 2021.

Fan Zhendong's Amazing Career

Fan Zhendong has had an incredible career in table tennis. Here are some of his biggest achievements year by year.

Early Career: 2013-2016

In 2013, at just 16 years old, Fan Zhendong surprised everyone. He finished second in a big competition in Paris. This showed he was a rising star.

In 2014, he became the youngest male World Champion in table tennis history! He was only 17 years and 103 days old when his team won the World Team Table Tennis Championships in Tokyo, Japan. He also won the men's singles title at the ITTF World Tour Japan Open in 2016. In that same year, he made a "magic save" in a match that became very famous. It even won him the "Star Point of the Year" award!

Becoming a Top Player: 2017-2020

In 2017, Fan Zhendong continued to win many titles. He won the men's doubles at the World Championships in Düsseldorf. He also won the men's singles and team events at the Asian Championships.

By 2018, he was a dominant force. He won the men's singles at the Hungarian Open and Qatar Open. He also won the Asian Cup and the World Cup singles title. He continued his winning streak in 2019, taking home more World Cup and ITTF World Tour Grand Finals titles. In 2020, he won the Men's Table Tennis World Cup for the fourth time.

Olympic Journey and Grand Slam: 2021-2024

In 2021, Fan Zhendong played in the Tokyo Olympics. He reached the men's singles final, where he won a silver medal. Later that year, he won the gold medal in men's singles at the World Championships. He also helped his team win gold at the China National Games.

In 2023, Fan Zhendong had an amazing year. He won five major titles, including double gold medals at the Singapore Smash. He also won both the men's singles and doubles at the World Championships. He was named the ITTF "Male Player of the Year" for his outstanding performance.

In 2024, Fan Zhendong achieved his biggest dream. He won his first individual Olympic gold medal at the Paris 2024 Games. This victory completed his career Grand Slam, meaning he has won the singles titles at the Olympics, World Championships, and World Cup. He is only the sixth male player ever to do this! A few days later, his Chinese team also won the men's team gold medal at the Paris Olympics.

Fan Zhendong's Tournament Results

This table shows Fan Zhendong's performance in major tournaments.

Key
W F SF QF #R

(W) won; (F) finalist; (SF) semi-finalist; (QF) quarter-finalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1
(S) singles event; (MD) men's doubles event; (XD) mixed doubles event; (T) team event

Tournament 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
World Championships S 3R SF F 4R W W
MD F W QF W
XD SF
T W W W W W
Olympic Games S F W
T W W
World Cup S F W W W W QF
T W W W W
ITTF Finals / WTT Finals S SF F F W QF W F W QF F
MD W SF
Asian Games S F W F
MD F W
T W W W
Asian Championships S QF W W SF F
MD W W F W
XD SF W
T W W W W W
Asian Cup S F F F W W
Year-end ranking 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
5 3 2 2 2 1 2 1 1 1 1 6

Images for kids

See Also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Fan Zhendong para niños

  • List of Youth Olympic Games gold medalists who won Olympic gold medals
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