Truls Carl Eric Möregårdh (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈtrɵ̌ls ˈmœ̂ːrɛˌɡoːɖ]; born 16 February 2002)[4] is a Swedish professional table tennis player. He took silver in the men's singles event at the 2024 Summer Olympics, as well as at the 2021 World Table Tennis Championships. In 2018, he took bronze with the Swedish team at the World Team Table Tennis Championships.
| Truls Möregårdh | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Möregårdh at the 2018 Youth Olympics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 16 February 2002 Lessebo, Sweden[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Table tennis career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing style | Right-handed, Shakehand grip | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Equipment(s) | Stiga Cybershape Carbon CWT Truls Edition, Stiga DNA Platinum XH (FH and BH) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | 3 (24 October 2022)[2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current ranking | 10 (19 November 2024)[3] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Playing style and equipment
editMöregårdh is right-handed and uses the European shakehand style to hold his racket. He has drawn comparisons to the Swedish great Jan-Ove Waldner for his extensive use of backhand blocking and backhand punching. He also regularly employs a number of unconventional techniques, such as the chop block, which contribute to his creative playing style.[5][6]
Möregårdh is notable for being one of the first elite players to use a table tennis racket with the Stiga Cybershape blade, which has a hexagonal shape as opposed to the more common oval shape. As a Stiga-sponsored athlete, he uses the Stiga Cybershape Carbon CWT Truls Edition blade and the Stiga DNA Platinum XH rubber on both sides.[5]
Career
editMöregårdh was considered a great talent from an early age. He achieved his first international successes in 2016. Overall, he is two-time European student champion and one European youth champion.
He finished second in 2016, 2017 and 2018. He also won the youth TOP 10 in 2016. In 2017 and 2018 he was junior vice world champion and was allowed to take part in the 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires, where he was able to reach the quarter-finals in an individual competition. With the Serbian Sabina Šurjan, he reached the game for the bronze medal in the mixed competition, where they were subject to the representation of Taiwan, Su Pei-ling and Lin Yun-ju. While Šurjan won her singles against Su, Möregårdh and Šurjan lost in doubles.
With the team he reached 4th place. From 2018 he took part in adult tournaments with increasing frequency, notable successes being winning the bronze medal at the 2018 World Cup and the 2019 European Table Tennis Championships. In 2019 he became Swedish champion after beating Kristian Karlsson in the final. In the same year he moved from Swedish club Eslövs AI BTK to the Japanese club TT Saitama.[7] In 2021 he became Swedish champion again when he defeated Anton Källberg in the final. The same year the won the silver in the 2021 World Championships, losing the final against Fan Zhendong.
As of 2023, he was playing for Lexuan Sports Group TTC in the China Table Tennis Super League.
At the 2024 Summer Olympics, Möregårdh won the silver medal, defeating the top-ranked Wang Chuqin in the round of 32 of the Men's singles but ultimately losing the final to Fan Zhendong.[8][9] Together with Anton Källberg and Kristian Karlsson, Möregårdh went on to win his second Olympic silver medal in the team event following a defeat against the Chinese team in the final.[10][11]
Overview of titles and successes
editSingles
edit- Europe Top-16 runner-up (2022) [12]
- World Championship runner-up (2021)
- Two-time youth vice world champion (2017, 2019)
- European Youth Champion (2019), Silver (2018)
- Two-time vice European champion (2016, 2017)
- Winner of the youth TOP 10 (2016)
- Swedish Champion (2019, 2021)
- Olympics Silver Medalist (2024)
Doubles
edit- European Schoolchildren (2017)
- Vice-Schoolchildren European Champion (2016), Vice-Youth European Champion (2019)
Mixed doubles
edit- Bronze at the European Youth Championships (2019)
- 4th place at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games
Team
edit- Vice European Schoolchildren (2016)
- 3rd place at the World Championships (2018)
- 3rd place at the European Championships (2019)
- 3rd place at the European Championships (2021)
- Gold at the European Championships (2023)
- Silver at the Paris Olympics (2024)
Personal life
editWhen Möregårdh was 12 years old, his entire family relocated to Eslöv so that he would have better conditions to pursue his table tennis goals.[13] Truls Möregårdh has a brother named Malte Möregårdh, who coaches him.[14]
References
edit- ^ "Truls Möregårdh: Sweden's rising table tennis star living out a 'fairytale'". olympics.com. 22 May 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "ITTF Table Tennis World Ranking Men's Singles 2022 Week #43". ITTF. 24 October 2022. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
- ^ "ITTF Table Tennis World Ranking". ITTF. Retrieved 19 November 2024.
- ^ Truls MOREGARD. World Table Tennis. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
- ^ a b "Truls Moregard equipment". pingsunday.com. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
- ^ "Truls Moregard Equipment and Profile". tabletennisteacher.com. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
- ^ "Bordtennislöftet Truls lyft – klar för Japans högstaliga". Aftonbladet. 19 June 2019. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
- ^ "Paris 2024, Day 5: Truls MOREGARD eliminated World No.1 WANG Chuqin". ETTU.org. 31 July 2024.
- ^ "Truls Möregårdh stred tappert men förlorade OS-finalen: "Betyder galet mycket"". Sveriges Television (in Swedish). 4 August 2024. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
- ^ "China Beats Sweden to Clinch Gold in Paris". ETTU.org. 9 August 2024.
- ^ "Truls Möregårdh om dubbla silvren: Det ska inte gå". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). 9 August 2024. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
- ^ "Swedish Prodigy Truls Moregardh reaches World Rank #14". TTCrunch.com. TTCrunch. March 2022.
- ^ "Så blev Truls bäst – hela familjen flyttade när han var 12". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). 2 August 2024. Archived from the original on 2 August 2024. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
- ^ Grefve, Daniel (31 July 2024). "Truls Möregårdhs bror och tränare Malte efter skrällen: "Hans självförtroende har varit väldigt, väldigt lågt"". Sveriges Television (in Swedish). Retrieved 1 August 2024.
External links
edit- Truls Möregårdh at World Table Tennis
- Truls Möregårdh at Olympedia
- Truls Möregårdh at Table Tennis Media
