Table tennis legend Timo Boll failed in the quarterfinals of the European Championship due to German shooting star Dang Qiu.
The record European champion was literally swept out of the Rudi-Sedlmayer hall by the Nürtinger at 0:4. After less than half an hour the game was over with 7:11, 8:11, 6:11, and 2:11. The veteran didn’t stand a chance against the powerful and dynamic game of the 25-year-old. Only when the score was 7:4 in the first round was there any hope.
Boll, who won his first of eight European Championship titles 20 years ago, had previously been out for a long time after breaking a rib. Qiu had said before the game: “Timo is eight times European Champion, and the European Championship is his home tournament – I have to play the best table tennis of my life.” Dang is the first German international with the penholder grip from the homeland of his Chinese parents.