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Indian American makes Table Tennis history for US at Paris
Kanak Jha made history as first U.S. Table Tennis player to reach Olympic round of 16.
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Kanak Jha. / Image – Instagram/ wtt
Kanak Jha, an Indian American table tennis player, is credited with taking the sport to a new level in the United States. Jha made history by becoming the first American to advance to the round of 16 at the Olympic Games held in Paris.
Despite his 4-0 loss to Tokyo silver medalist Fan Zhendong in the round of 16, the 24-year-old has established a new standard in a sport in which no American has ever won a medal.
Ranked 120 globally, Jha began his Paris journey with a major upset, where he defeated Korea’s Cho Daeseong, ranked 20th in the world, with a score of 4-2. The youngster continued his run by overcoming Greece’s Panagiotis Gionis 4-2 on July 31, securing his place in the round of 16.
Having represented the United States in Rio and Tokyo, Jha’s road to Paris was not easy. He faced a year-long suspension by the US Anti-Doping Agency due to multiple whereabouts failures, which kept him out of the sport until March of this year.
He also had to overcome financial obstacles, which prompted him to launch a GoFundMe campaign and raise nearly $12,000 to fund his Olympic journey.
Born in Milpitas, California, Jha moved to Sweden at 15 and later to Germany at 17 to pursue his professional table tennis career. He spends most of his time training in Germany.
Despite Jha’s early exit from the games, his achievement is seen as a poaitive sign for the growth of the sport in the country that only recently launched Major League Table Tennis last year, founded by software entrepreneur Flint Lane.
Thank you, Kanak Jha!
— USA Table Tennis (@usatabletennis) August 1, 2024
Proud of Kanak Jha, the first U.S. men’s table tennis player to reach the Round of 16 at the Olympics! Your talent and dedication inspire us all. Can’t wait to see what’s next!@teamusa @jhakanak#TeamUSA #USATT #Paris2024 #ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/0lIEpK6qmV
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