Filipino table tennis players cop silver in 2023 SEA Youth tilt

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines displayed a strong showing in the 2023 SEA Youth table tennis championships in Brunei when it took home a silver medal in the junior girls’ U19 team event.

Kheith Rhynne Cruz, Chrishien Mae Santillan, Althea Jade Gudes, and Jelaine Monteclaro swept the group stage of the seven-nation competition organized by the Southeast Asian Table Tennis Association (SEATTA). The team also beat Vietnam, 3-1, in the semifinals before being defeated by Thailand, 3-1, for the title.

The silver was the best finish by the Philippines in a women’s team event in a SEATTA competition.

The Philippines swept Group B highlighted by a 3-1 win over Singapore, one of the top table tennis teams in the region. It also defeated Brunei, 3-0, and Malaysia, 3-1, to take first place and arrange a crossover semifinal showdown with Vietnam.

“The silver medal will serve as motivation to come up with more programs to discover new talents for the national team,” said Philippine Table Tennis Federation Inc. president Ting Ledesma.

Prior to the SEATTA, Cruz was fresh from competing in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in which she made the national team through PTTF’s selection tournament held in Puerto Princesa last March.

The SEA Games last May saw Richard Gonzales and John Russel Misal taking the bronze medal in the men’s doubles for Team Philippines.