PH NO.1 KHEITH RYHNNE CRUZ IS ALL SET FOR BANGKOK OLYMPIC QUALIFYING

Pinay table tennis phenom Kheith Ryhnne Cruz knows how tough the challenges she will face to earn the coveted Olympic slots will be. Still, the current World Table Tennis Youth Challenge 19-under champion is confident that she will be able to make it just like her late idol, Ian Lariba.

The Philippine women's No.1 is set to compete in two Olympic qualifying tournaments at the European Open in April and the Asian Table Tennis Championship in Bangkok, Thailand, in May – where she will need a miracle to get through the tough match.

The Paris Olympics is set from July 26 to August 11.

"At the European Open, I will play in mixed doubles with John Nayre; here, we must get through because only the top 4 will be given slots for the Paris Games. In the Asian Championships, I will play in the women's singles, where only one slot is needed for the Olympics. It means I need to win the gold medal," said the 17-year-old and world No. 66 in the 17-under class.

"The challenge is tough, but I am ready to repay the trust and support given to me by our countrymen and my sponsors, who continue to trust my ability. That's why I focus on training and benefit from the opportunities I have played abroad," she said in the weekly forum sponsored by the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC), Behrouz Persian Cuisine, and Pocari Sweat.

After winning the WTTYC championship this past December in Palawan, the Grade 12 student of the Paco Citizen Academy Foundation participated in a series of tournaments as part of her preparations for her ultimate goal – to play in the Olympics.

"If I am lucky this year, it’s really a blessing, but if not, I’ll try again for the next Olympics. Target ko po talaga ang Olympics at matularan ang success ni Ate Yan-Yan (Lariba)," said Cruz.

At the Silicon Valley Table Tennis Tournament in San Francisco, California, last February 17-19, Kheith Rhynne won four gold medals in Under-19 singles, Open singles, U19 mixed doubles with American Bosman Botha, and Open women's doubles with Dongheon Lee of Korea.

Earlier, on January 27-30, Cruz won the gold medal in the Open Singles and Mixed doubles event with Kenneth Pinili at the Sacramento Winter Open Table Tennis.

"I'm super proud to be able to play in a world-class tournament. World-ranked players are here, so I'm inspired to play. I just hope the support will continue so that I can continue training here in the US," she said.

Cruz is scheduled to return to California to train at the Triple 8 Club Center managed by Pinoy migrant Ivy Spencer.

"It's better to train in the US compared to China. First, of course, is communications. Second, in China, it is difficult to play at a higher level, compared to the US, where there is no problem if you want to play with the world-ranking players," said Cruz, who was supported by the Table Tennis Association for National Development (TATAND), Joola, and XIOM—a Korean brand that sponsors world champions.

Ph no. 1 woman table tennis player Kheith Rhynne Cruz