TOPX̄ 2026 Showcased New Zealand's Best and Brightest

National Para Squad Camp

TOPX 2026 Showcased New Zealand's Best and Brightest

New Zealand's top table tennis players and emerging stars delivered an exciting weekend of competition at TOPX 2026, held at Rosehill College in Auckland on 4 and 5 July.

Li Chunli

As the country's premier invitational event, TOPX brought together the nation's leading players in the Open Men's, Open Women's, Under 19 Boys' and Under 19 Girls' divisions.

This year's tournament featured a blend of experience and youth, with former Commonwealth Games champion and four time Olympian Li Chunli, former New Zealand Open champion Dean Shu, and a group of New Zealand's most promising young players, many of whom had recently returned from successful international campaigns across Asia, Europe and North America.

Competing in a round robin format, players faced multiple high quality matches across the two days, producing plenty of outstanding performances and memorable moments.

Angel Han and Li Chunli

Angel Han's Breakthrough Victory

One of the standout stories of the tournament came in the Open Women's event, where Angel Han recorded the biggest win of her career.

Angel defeated former Commonwealth Games champion Li Chunli in a dramatic seven game encounter that showcased the determination and quality of both players. After six closely fought games, the match was locked at 3 to 3 before Angel held her nerve to win the deciding game 11 to 7.

The victory was an emotional moment for Angel, who described it as the biggest win of her table tennis journey.

Asked to sum up the match in one word, her response was immediate:

"Cinematic."

Having never played Chunli before, Angel focused on taking the match one point at a time. She later said she drew confidence from seeing other players challenge the former Commonwealth Games champion throughout the event.

Angel also highlighted the importance of TOPX in helping athletes develop their game.

"TOPX gives us the chance to play against some of the country's best players and learn from every match. Opportunities like this help prepare us for future competitions."

Despite the defeat, Chunli praised the progress of New Zealand's younger generation.

"It is great to see how far our younger players have come. TOPX provides so many quality matches. I will go back, work on my game and continue to improve."

Angel's breakthrough win was one of many highlights from the tournament and showed how young New Zealand players are continuing to improve and challenge the country's best.

Dean Shu battled against Alfred Dela -Peña

A Classic in the Men's Competition

The Open Men's event also produced one of the most entertaining matches of the tournament.

Dean Shu battled back from a 1-3 deficit to defeat Alfred Dela-Peña in a thrilling seven game contest. Alfred looked in control after building a strong lead, but Dean's experience and determination saw him fight his way back into the match before completing a remarkable comeback victory.

The encounter featured spectacular rallies and outstanding shots making from both players, earning praise from spectators throughout the weekend.

U19 Girls' Singles

🥇 Karen Looi
🥈 Josephine Chong
🥉 Flanny Xue

Champions Crowned

Following two days of intense competition, the final podium results were:

Open Men's Singles

🥇 Dean Shu
🥈 Timothy Choi
🥉 Alfred Dela Peña

Open Women's Singles

🥇 Angel Han
🥈 Li Chunli
🥉 Jocelyn Lam

U19 Boys' Singles

🥇 August Xiao
🥈 Tushan Engineer
🥉 Oscar Du

U19 Girls' Singles

🥇 Karen Looi
🥈 Josephine Chong
🥉 Flanny Xue

A Strong Showcase of New Zealand Talent

TOPX brought together some of New Zealand's best and most promising table tennis players, delivering exciting matches and high quality competition throughout the weekend.

The event gave athletes the chance to compete against the country's top players while highlighting the continued growth of table tennis in New Zealand.