7/5/2008 2008 Tahiti Junior Open - ITTF Junior Circuit

There are those players who rise to the occasion; the big match is their home and when the tension rises they are in their element. Was that not a quality that made Jan-Ove Waldner arguably the greatest table tennis player to walk planet earth?

It is that strength of character that separates the good from the great, it is the attribute of champions and it would seem that Japan has a player who may well possess those traits.

Fifteen year old Yuki Hirano is the young man in question; put him in a final, put him under pressure and he rises to the occasion.

 7/5/2008 2008 Tahiti Junior Open - ITTF Junior Circuit

The winner’s trophy and a cheque for US$500 was the early birthday present for Japan’s Megumi Okazaki on Saturday 5th July 2008.

Six days before her seventeenth birthday, she won the Girls’ Singles title at the Tahiti Junior Open in Papeete beating national team compatriot, Misaki Morizono, at the final hurdle.

She recovered from an opening game deficit to win 9-11, 13-11, 11-7, 11-9, 11-2.

 7/5/2008 2008 Tahiti Junior Open - ITTF Junior Circuit

Japan dominated matters in the cadet events at the Tahiti Junior Open in Papeete winning all four individual titles on offer on Saturday 5th July 2008; a feat they repeated later in the day in the junior events.

Koki Niwa and Ayuka Tanioka emerged as the respective Cadet Boys’ and Cadet Girls’ Singles champions with both securing a brace of titles by emerging victorious in the doubles.

Auka Machi partnered Koki Niwa to Cadet Boys’ Doubles gold, whilst Rika Suzuki joined forces with Ayuka Tanioka to emerge as Cadet Girls’ Doubles champions.

 7/4/2008 2008 Tahiti Junior Open - ITTF Junior Circuit

In the Boys’ Singles event the Japanese quartet of Koki Niwa, Asuka Machi, Yuki Hirano and Kohei Morimoto booked their quarter-final places in impressive style at the Tahiti Junior Open in Papeete on Thursday 3rd July 2008; in the counterpart female event the girls did exactly the same.

It was a comparatively trouble free passage to the quarter-finals for the five leading Japanese ladies.

Megumi Okazaki, Misaki Morizono, Ayuka Tanioka, Rika Suzuki and Hiroko Nakagawa all progressed to the round of the last eight.

 7/4/2008 2008 Tahiti Junior Open - ITTF Junior Circuit

The Japanese quartet of Koki Niwa, Asuka Machi, Yuki Hirano and Kohei Morimoto all booked their places in the quarter-final stage of the Boys’ Singles event at the Tahiti Junior Open in Papeete on Thursday 3rd July 2008 with a series of comfortable wins in the group stage of proceedings.

Similarly, in the Boys’ Doubles event the four rising stars all enjoyed safe passages to the semi-final stage.

It was success for the pairing of Asuka Machi and Koki Niwa as it was for the duo of Yuki Hirano and Kohei Morimoto.

 7/4/2008 2008 Tahiti Junior Open - ITTF Junior Circuit

The top two seeded players in the Cadet Boys’ Singles event and the top two seeded players in the Cadet Girls’ Singles competition at the Tahiti Junior Open in Papeete, duly booked their places in the gold medal contests following quarter and semi-final victories on Thursday 3rd July 2008.

Furthermore, the riches are destined for Japan with the finalists in both events being from a country that is steeped in table tennis.

In the Cadet Boys’ Singles final Koki Niwa meets Asuka Machi whilst in the counterpart female event Ayuka Tanioka confronts Rika Suzuki.

 7/3/2008 2008 Tahiti Junior Open - ITTF Junior Circuit

Success came the way of Japan in Papeete on Wednesday 2nd July 2008, as they clinched both the Girls’ Team and Cadet Girls’ Team titles at the Tahiti Junior Open Championships beating Australia in both finals by three matches to nil.

In the final of the Girls’ Team event, Megumi Okazaki defeated Belinda Le, Misaki Morizono overcame Melissa Tapper and matters came to a conclusion with doubles success for the Japanese pairing against Belinda Le and Ashleigh Stevenson.

Similarly, in the final of the Cadet Girls’ Team event it was an impressive win for Japan.