eye-catching but beaten by China, France vice-world team champion for the first time since 1997

Simon Gauzy, Alexis and Félix Lebrun were beaten in the final by the irresistible Chinese on Sunday in South Korea. They console themselves with a historic silver medal.

France won a historic silver medal at the World Table Tennis Team Championships on Sunday February 25 in Busan (South Korea). The Blues, represented by brothers Alexis and Félix Lebrun and Simon Gauzy, were beaten in the final (3-0) by the untouchable Chinese, carried by the three best players on the planet and world champions for the eleventh time in a row. A very promising performance, five months before the Olympic Games.

Despite a seemingly unbalanced balance of power, the French harbored no complexes and made the Chinese doubt. This was certainly not enough to hope to do better than in 1997 and 1948, the date of the first two team silver medals. The Lebrun brothers (20 and 17 years old) were not born, and when experience mixes with their carelessness, all hopes will be allowed.

A match point for Alexis Lebrun

The youngest of the siblings, Félix (6th in the world), did not weigh in a first match quickly sealed against Wang Chuqin (11-4, 11-8, 11-3). His elder Alexis, although less well ranked (21st), achieved a monumental feat against Fan Zhendong, world number 1. The latter had only lost one set in all of these Worlds. He was showered twice, in the first (11-9) and the third round (11-8), by a gala Alexis Lebrun.

In a very high level match, with many extended points, the Montpellier player came close to the feat in the fourth set. But he was unable to convert the match point and was immediately punished (10-12). Mentally affected, Alexis Lebrun (21st in the world) did not weigh in a decisive fifth set (7-11).

Carried by the same energy as the two brothers, Simon Gauzy (30th in the world) also foiled the legend Ma Long (3rd in the world). The 29-year-old Toulouse won the first set (11-7), but was cooled at the end by the reigning double Olympic champion (11-2, 11-4, 11-6). Too fair to deprive the Chinese of an eleventh coronation in a row, the French paid to learn and wrote the first page of a book which only asks to be thickened.