Tuesday, October 31th, 2023.- The United States and Cuba were the big winners in table tennis this Tuesday, each claiming gold in the female and male doubles respectively at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games.

In the female event, the U.S. duo of Amy Wang and Rachel Sung secured victory with scores of 11-7, 5-11, 7-11, 12-10, 11-8, 4-11, and 11-6 against the Brazilian sisters Bruna and Giulia Takahashi.

Amy Wang, elated with the gold around her neck, emphasized the significance of their victory over the Brazilians. "We faced them a few months ago, I think in September, during the Pan American Championships. We won 3-2 in that match, so we knew that reaching this final was going to be really tough. We prepared mentally and physically and fought for every point, believing in ourselves."

In the male category, the Cuban pair of Jorge Campos and Andy Pereira triumphed with scores of 5-11, 11-8, 11-8, 12-10, 8-11, and 11-7 against the Brazilian duo of Hugo Calderano and Vitor Ishiy, leaving the South Americans with two silver medals in table tennis within hours.

With the gold already on their bodies, Pereira stated, "Jorge and I have been playing together for more than 20 years in doubles events, and we have already been Central American champions, we have been Latin American champions, but we were always missing this medal."

Ecstatic, Campos added, "Cuba had never won a gold medal in male doubles at an event. So it has been something historic. There is no way to describe the emotion of winning this medal. And I am thrilled to do it alongside my partner."

With these table tennis golds, the United States solidifies its lead in the Santiago 2023 medal standings with 178 total medals, including 76 golds. Meanwhile, Cuba ranks sixth with 30 medals, including 15 golds.

Written by Patricio Echagüe - Leslie Castillo; translated by Rocio Rojas / Photosport
Photo by Alex Diaz / Santiago 2023 / Photosport