Experienced Team Canada Table Tennis team announced for Paris 2024

TORONTO (June 20, 2024) – Table Tennis Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee have announced the roster of Team Canada table tennis athletes nominated to compete at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The athletes are:

Jeremy Hazin (Richmond Hill, Ont.)
Edward Ly (Lachine, Que.)
Eugene Wang (Aurora, Ont.)
Mo Zhang (Vancouver, B.C.)

Canada qualified a full men’s team for Paris 2024 by winning silver in the men’s team event at the 2023 International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Pan American Championships in Havana, Cuba, where Olympic spots were awarded to the top two teams of each gender. Paris 2024 will be the first Olympic Games since London 2012 for which Canada will field a men’s team.

Eugene Wang, the 38-year-old veteran on the men’s side, will make his fourth Olympic appearance. Wang helped the men’s team to a ninth-place finish at London 2012, just weeks after he received his Canadian citizenship. At Rio 2016, Wang was the sole male athlete on the Canadian Olympic table tennis team. At Tokyo 2020, Wang placed ninth in mixed doubles with partner Mo Zhang. Wang has also represented Team Canada at three Pan American Games, winning seven career medals, including three at Santiago 2023. In Paris, he will play in both the men’s team and men’s singles events.

Wang will be joined by fellow Tokyo 2020 Olympian Jeremy Hazin, as well as Edward Ly who will make his Olympic debut in Paris.

Ly, the youngest on the team at 21, won the 2024 Pan Am Cup after initially stepping in as a replacement for Wang. The victory at the tournament propelled him to qualify for the World Cup circuit. Ly was also part of the silver-medal winning men’s team at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games. Ly also competed at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. He won three gold medals (men’s singles, mixed doubles, men’s team) at the 2019 Canada Winter Games. Ly will compete in both the men’s team and men’s singles events.

Hazin became Canada’s youngest men’s singles national champion ever when he won the title in 2017 at age 17. He also made history at age 13 when he became the youngest Canadian player to ever compete at the senior ITTF World Championships. The now 24-year-old competed at the Lima 2019 Pan American Games and won a bronze medal at the Cali 2021 Junior Pan American Games in men’s singles.

Canada’s lone entry on the women’s side is veteran Mo Zhang, who will make her fifth Olympic appearance at Paris 2024. The 35-year-old has been competing for Team Canada at the Olympic Games since Beijing 2008. She has steadily progressed from a first round elimination in Beijing to reaching the Round of 16 at Tokyo 2020, matching Canada’s best ever Olympic result in women’s singles. 

Zhang qualified for the women’s singles tournament at Paris 2024 by winning her knock-out final of the ITTF Americas Olympic Qualification tournament last month. Zhang has competed at five Pan American Games, bringing home a total eight medals.

“I’m very happy that I can play in my fifth Olympic Games. It’s an honour to be competing in the Olympics with other top Canadian athletes.” said Zhang. “I’m excited about the Opening Ceremony on the Seine, and also having an audience at these Games. I hope we play well in every game without any regrets, and I hope we can play to our highest level.”

Although Canada has not yet won an Olympic medal in table tennis, Canadian Johnny Huang reached the top-five in men’s singles at Atlanta 1996. Mo Zhang’s Round of 16 result in women’s singles at Tokyo 2020 had previously been achieved by Lijuan Geng at Atlanta 1996. Table tennis has been part of the Olympic sport program since Seoul 1988.

Table tennis will take place July 27 to August 10 (Day 1 to 15) at the South Paris Arena 4.

”Team Canada table tennis players are the crème de la crème of the racket and the maestros of the table. With their quick reflexes, precision, and agility, each exchange demonstrates their strength and passion.” said Bruny Surin, Team Canada’s Paris 2024 Chef de Mission. ”With veterans like Eugene and Mo, rich in Olympic experiences, I am very excited to see what this team will accomplish this summer.”

The Canadian table tennis team for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games also includes the following alternate athletes, coaches and support staff:

Hongtao Chen (Richmond Hill, Ont.) – Coach
Aaron Wang (Newmarket, Ont.) – Alternate athlete

Prior to being named to Team Canada, all nominations are subject to approval by the Canadian Olympic Committee’s Team Selection Committee following its receipt of nominations by all National Sport Organizations.

The latest Team Canada Paris 2024 roster can be found here.

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MEDIA CONTACTS:

Thorsten Gohl (he/him), Vice President
Table Tennis Canada
T: (867) 373-2101
E: thor@ttcanada.ca 

Tara MacBournie, Program Manager, Sport Communications
Canadian Olympic Committee
C: 647-522-8328
E: tmacbournie@olympic.ca