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Félix Lebrun

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Félix Lebrun
Lebrun at the 2022 European Championships
Personal information
Born (2006-09-12) 12 September 2006 (age 18)
Montpellier, France
Height1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[1]
Table tennis career
Playing styleRight-handed penholder
Equipment(s)F. Lebrun Hyper Carbon (blade), Hybrid K3 max (rubber)[2]
Highest ranking5 (19 March 2024)[3]
Current ranking5 (29 October 2024)[4]
Medal record
Men's table tennis
Representing  France
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Paris Singles
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Paris Team
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2024 Busan Team
European Games
Gold medal – first place 2023 Kraków–Małopolska Singles
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Kraków–Małopolska Team
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 2024 Linz Doubles
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Munich Doubles
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Malmö Team

Félix Lebrun pronounced [feliks lə.bʁœ̃] ⓘ (born 12 September 2006) is a French table tennis player.[5] He was a gold medalist at the 2023 European Games and reached the top ten list of the ITTF (International Table Tennis Federation) world ranking for the first time in October 2023.[6][7] As of 6 August 2024, he was number 5 in the world in the ITTF world rankings,[4] making him the top-ranked French and European player. Stylistically, he plays with a penholder grip (with a reverse penhold backhand), which is a rarity among top players today.[8] He won two bronze medals at the 2024 Summer Olympics, one in individual and one in team, thus becoming at 17 years the youngest ever medalist in those events, and also the youngest male medalist in Olympic table tennis.[9][10]

Career

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Born in Montpellier, Lebrun and his older brother Alexis Lebrun were raised in a family connected to table tennis.[5][11] Their father, Stéphane, was ranked as high as number seven in France, while their uncle Christophe Legoût represented France at three Olympics. Like his brother, Félix Lebrun began his table tennis career at the age of three.[2] He was inspired by Chen Jian, a penhold player from China who trained in Montpellier and Istres, leading him to adopt a penhold grip at the age of four.[12] The Wall Street Journal compared Lebrun's playing style to that of "an old Chinese man", with American player Lily Zhang describing Lebrun's play as "very refreshing.”[13]

In 2023, Lebrun won gold at the European Games by defeating Marcos Freitas in a seven-game final.[6] Three months later, he won WTT Contender series event in Antalya.[14] A series of successes propelled him into the top ten of the ITTF world ranking in October.[7]

Lebrun won his second WTT singles event at the WTT Star Contender Goa in 2024.[15] He continued to help the French men's team advance to the final of the 2024 World Team Championships.[16] This marked the French team's first final appearance at the World Team Championships since 1997.[17][18]

He won the bronze medal at the men's singles table tennis event of the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024 against Hugo Calderano.[19][20]

Singles titles

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Year Tournament Final opponent Score Ref
2023 European Games Portugal Marcos Freitas 4–3 [21]
2023 WTT Contender Antalya Germany Dimitrij Ovtcharov 4–3 [22]
2024 WTT Star Contender Goa Brazil Hugo Calderano 4–2 [23]
2024 WTT Champions Montpellier Japan Tomokazu Harimoto 4–1 [24]

See also

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  • Alexis Lebrun, Félix's elder brother and three-time French national champion in table tennis

References

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  1. ^ "Félix Lebrun professional player profile". tibhar.info. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Félix Lebrun". tibhar.info. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  3. ^ "Ranking History". results.ittf.link. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  4. ^ a b "ITTF Table Tennis World Ranking: Men's Singles: 2024 Week #32 – August 6th". Ittf.com. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Félix Lebrun". fftt.com (in French). Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Lebrun brothers dominate men's table tennis singles tournament". european-games.org. 28 June 2023. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  7. ^ a b "ITTF Table Tennis World Ranking Men's Singles 2023 Week #43 – October 24th". ittf.com. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  8. ^ Woo, Stu. "There's a LeBron of Table Tennis. His Name Is Lebrun". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  9. ^ "Félix Lebrun écrase Hugo Calderano et décroche le bronze aux JO de Paris 2024". L’Equipe. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  10. ^ "Les frères Alexis et Félix Lebrun et Simon Gauzy en bronze aux JO de Paris 2024 après une longue bataille face au Japon". L’Equipe. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  11. ^ "Félix and Alexis Lebrun: The teenage French brothers ready to conquer the table tennis world, 500 days out from Paris 2024". olympics.com. 15 March 2023. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  12. ^ "2023 World Table Tennis Championships: Why does Félix Lebrun play with a pen grip?". olympics.com (in French). 24 May 2023. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  13. ^ Woo, Stu. "There's a LeBron of Table Tennis. His Name Is Lebrun". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  14. ^ "Felix! – Lebrun's Turkish Delight". butterflyonline.com. 22 October 2023. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  15. ^ "WTT Star Contender Goa: World No. 8 Lebrun, Cheng I-Ching crowned champions". The Morung Express. 28 January 2024. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  16. ^ "Led by Félix Lebrun, France achieves the feat of qualifying for the final against the Chinese". pointactu.fr. 24 February 2024. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  17. ^ "France reached the final at the World Championships, ending almost three decades of drought". ettu.org. 24 February 2024. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  18. ^ "Silver and bronze medals for France at the ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals in Busan". ettu.org. 25 February 2024. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  19. ^ "Félix Lebrun écrase Hugo Calderano et décroche le bronze aux JO de Paris 2024". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 2024-08-05.
  20. ^ "Félix Lebrun secures bronze at Paris 2024: A rising star in table tennis - We Are Wearside". 2024-08-04. Retrieved 2024-08-04.
  21. ^ "Men's Singles Results" (PDF). european-games.org. 27 June 2023. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 July 2023. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  22. ^ "WTT Contender Antalya 2023". worldtabletennis.com. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  23. ^ "WTT Star Contender Goa 2024". worldtabletennis.com. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  24. ^ "WTT Champions Montpellier 2024". worldtabletennis.com. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
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