Shin Yu-bin is fighting fit and looking for some silverware

Shin Yu-bin in action during a 2023 Korea Table Tennis League game at Gwanggyo Gymnasium in Kyonggi University on Feb. 5 [KTTA]

Korean table tennis prospect Shin Yu-bin is ready to return to action after a long injury.

The eighteen-year-old came to prominence at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as she became the youngest Korean table tennis player ever to play at the Olympics.

Although Shin failed to win a medal in her first Olympics after losing 4-2 to No.15 Doo Hoi Kem of Hong Kong in the round of 32, She proved her potential as she managed to reach the quarterfinals in a team match with Choi Hyo-joo and Jeon Ji-hee.

After the Olympics, Shin was expected to improve significantly but could not do so due to an injury.

The Korean prospect picked up a wrist injury in November 2021 during the 2021 World Table Tennis Championships in Houston. That injury did not heal quickly, ultimately forcing her to undergo rehabilitation for about a year.

“It was the most difficult time of my life,” Shin said during an interview with MBC. “I was mentally exhausted because my wrist did not heal well. I could not count how many times I cried back then.”

Shin also missed the selection for the Korean national squad for the 2022 Asian Games last year due to the injury, although the tournament was postponed so the selection did not matter.

During the rehabilitation period, however, she focused on her lower body strength, which has enabled her to move with more agility.

Shin is now looking to play in the 2022 Asian games in Hangzhou, China in pursuit of her first medal at the Asiad. The tournament is now happening in September this year.

The last time she won a medal in an international tournament was back in October 2021, when she won one gold medal in a singles and two silver medals in team matches and a doubles in the 2021 Asian Table Tennis Championships.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]