Li Jiawei

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Li Jiawei bigraphy, stories - Singaporean table tennis player

Li Jiawei : biography

9 August 1981 –

Li Jiawei ( born 9 August 1981) is a China born Singaporean table tennis player who is ranked among the top ten athletes in her sport. Spotted by Singapore talent scouts in Beijing in 1995, she moved to Singapore and commenced her international career in competitive table tennis in 1996. She became a Singapore citizen at the age of 18 years under the Foreign Sports Talent Scheme.

As a singles player, Li was ranked sixth in the world as of August 2008. Her highest ranking was in December 2005, when she was third. Li is also a key player for women’s team and doubles, and mixed doubles events. She finished in fourth place in singles at both the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens and the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. On 15 August, the Singapore women’s team composed of Li and her teammates Feng Tianwei and Wang Yuegu defeated South Korea 3–2 in the semifinals. However in the finals on 17 August, the team lost to China and obtained a silver medal, marking the first time that Singapore had won an Olympic medal since the nation’s independence in 1965. The medal came 48 years after Tan Howe Liang won the country’s first medal, a silver in weightlifting at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. Li ended 2008 on a high, winning gold in the women’s team event with Feng and Wang at the ITTF Pro Tour ERKE German Open in Berlin in November, and in the doubles with Sun Beibei at the ITTF Volkswagen Pro Tour Grand Finals in Macau in December 2008.

Li won the women’s team bronze medal with Feng and Wang at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. She announced her retirement from competitive sports on 27 December 2012.

Personal life

Li first met Singaporean badminton player and fellow Olympian Ronald Susilo in 2002 at a sports meet. They began dating after participating together in the Athens Olympics, and the "golden sports couple",. as they were dubbed by the media, announced their engagement in September 2004. About two years later there were rumours that they were breaking up, but these were denied by them at the time. On 15 January 2008, when queried by a journalist, Susilo confirmed that he and Li had broken up amicably the previous week. Following a report in The Sunday Times that Susilo was contemplating legal action against her to recover money he claimed to have spent in buying their condominium apartment and car, Li disagreed that Susilo had a share in the apartment and implied he was trying to affect her mood and thus her chances of winning a medal at the Beijing Olympics. Susilo declined to discuss the matter with the press, saying it was a private matter between Li and himself; he wished her all the best for the Olympics.. See also . In October 2008 it was announced that Li and Susilo had settled their property dispute amicably. The terms of the settlement were confidential.; .

On 26 September 2008, Li registered a marriage in Beijing with Li Chao,; . a businessman based in that city; they were introduced by a mutual friend in March 2008. Sources quoted by The Straits Times said Li had long wanted her children to bear her surname.. See also . A lavish wedding banquet was held at the Beijing Hotel on 25 April 2009.; . In November 2008 Li said she wished to have two to three children before turning 35, though this would not affect her table tennis career. On 13 October 2009, she and her husband had their first child, a boy weighing . Her husband confirmed that they were "hoping for at least three kids, the more the merrier", and it was reported that Li would try for more children following the 2012 Summer Olympics. Li started training again in February 2010 and competed in the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.. See also ; .

Medals

Event Medal Date Competition
1997
Women’s team Gold 1997 Commonwealth ChampionshipsGlasgow, Scotland, UK
Women’s singles Bronze 1997 Commonwealth ChampionshipsGlasgow, Scotland, UK
Women’s doubles Gold 1997 Commonwealth ChampionshipsGlasgow, Scotland, UK
Mixed doubles Gold 1997 Commonwealth ChampionshipsGlasgow, Scotland, UK
1998
Women’s team Gold 1998 1998 Southeast Asian ChampionshipsBangkok, Thailand
Women’s singles Gold 1998 1998 Southeast Asian ChampionshipsBangkok, Thailand
Mixed doubles Gold 1998 1998 Southeast Asian ChampionshipsBangkok, Thailand
1999
Women’s singles Bronze 1999 ITTF Pro Tour French OpenLievin, France
Women’s doubles Bronze 1999 ITTF Pro Tour Czech Republic OpenPrague, Czech Republic
Women’s team Gold 7–15 August 1999 20th Southeast Asian (SEA) GamesBandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam
Women’s singles Gold 7–15 August 1999 20th SEA GamesBandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam
Women’s doubles(with Jing Junhong) Gold 7–15 August 1999 20th SEA GamesBandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam
Mixed doubles(with Duan Yongjun) Bronze 7–15 August 1999 20th SEA GamesBandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam
2000
Women’s doubles Silver 2000 ITTF Pro Tour Swedish OpenUmeå, Sweden
Women’s doubles Bronze 2000 ITTF Pro Tour Danish OpenFarum, Denmark
Women’s doubles Bronze 2000 ITTF Pro Tour Polish OpenWarsaw, Poland
Women’s doubles Bronze 2000 ITTF Pro Tour Brazil OpenRio de Janeiro, Brazil
Women’s doubles Bronze 2000 ITTF Pro Tour US OpenFort Lauderdale, Florida, USA
Women’s team Gold 2000 Commonwealth ChampionshipsSingapore
Women’s singles Gold 2000 Commonwealth ChampionshipsSingapore
Women’s doubles Gold 2000 Commonwealth ChampionshipsSingapore
Mixed doubles Gold 2000 Commonwealth ChampionshipsSingapore
Women’s team Gold 2000 South East Asian ChampionshipsKuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Women’s singles Gold 2000 South East Asian ChampionshipsKuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Women’s doubles Gold 2000 South East Asian ChampionshipsKuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Mixed doubles Gold 2000 South East Asian ChampionshipsKuala Lumpur, Malaysia
2001
Women’s doubles Bronze 2001 ITTF Pro Tour Danish OpenFarum, Denmark
Women’s doubles Silver 2000 ITTF Pro Tour China OpenHainan, China
Women’s team Gold 2001 Commonwealth Championships
Women’s singles Gold 2001 Commonwealth Championships
Women’s doubles Gold 2001 Commonwealth Championships
Mixed doubles.(with Duan Yongjun) Gold 2001 Commonwealth Championships
Women’s team Gold 8–17 September 2001 21st SEA GamesKuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Women’s singles Gold 8–17 September 2001 21st SEA GamesKuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Women’s doubles(with Jing Junhong) Gold 8–17 September 2001 21st SEA GamesKuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Mixed doubles(with Duan Yongjun) Bronze 8–17 September 2001 21st SEA GamesKuala Lumpur, Malaysia
2002
Women’s singles. Silver 23–27 January 2002 ITTF Pro Tour Austria OpenWels, Austria
Women’s singles. Bronze 5 May 2002 ITTF Pro Tour Italian OpenCourmayeur, Italy
Women’s team Gold 25 July – 4 August 2002 XVII Commonwealth GamesManchester, England, UK
Women’s singles. Silver 25 July – 4 August 2002 XVII Commonwealth GamesManchester, England, UK
Women’s doubles(with Jing Junhong) Gold 25 July – 4 August 2002 XVII Commonwealth GamesManchester, England, UK
Mixed doubles(with Duan Yongjun) Gold 25 July – 4 August 2002 XVII Commonwealth GamesManchester, England, UK
Women’s team Bronze 29 September – 14 October 2002 2002 Asian GamesBusan, Korea
Women’s singles Bronze 29 September – 14 October 2002 2002 Asian GamesBusan, Korea
2003
Women’s singles. Bronze 5 October 2003 ITTF Pro Tour Malaysian OpenJohor Bahru, Malaysia
Women’s doubles.(with Jing Junhong) Bronze 21 September 2003 ITTF Pro Tour Japan OpenKobe, Japan
Women’s doubles.(with Jing Junhong) Silver 7 September 2003 ITTF Pro Tour Korea OpenJeju City, Jeju-do, South Korea
Women’s team Gold 12 December 2003 22nd SEA GamesHanoi, Vietnam
Women’s singles Gold 12 December 2003 22nd SEA GamesHanoi, Vietnam
Women’s doubles(with Jing Junhong) Gold 5–13 December 2003 22nd SEA GamesHanoi, Vietnam
Mixed doubles(with Cai Xiaoli) Gold 5–13 December 2003 22nd SEA GamesHanoi, Vietnam
2004
Women’s singles Bronze 2004 Asian CupKitakyūshū, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan
Women’s team Gold 2004 Commonwealth ChampionshipsKuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Women’s singles. Bronze 7 May 2004 ITTF Pro Tour Egypt OpenCairo, Egypt
Women’s doubles.(with Jing Junhong) Bronze 7 May 2004 ITTF Pro Tour Egypt OpenCairo, Egypt
Women’s singles. Bronze 23 May 2004 ITTF Pro Tour Volkswagen Korea OpenPyeongchang, Gangwon-do, South Korea
Women’s doubles.(with Jing Junhong) Bronze 23 May 2004 ITTF Pro Tour Volkswagen Korea OpenPyeongchang, Gangwon-do, South Korea
Women’s singles Gold 3 July 2004 ITTF Pro Tour US OpenChicago, Illinois, USA
Women’s doubles Bronze 3 July 2004 ITTF Pro Tour US OpenChicago, Illinois, USA
2005
Women’s singles. Gold 12–15 January 2005 ITTF Pro Tour Liebherr Slovenian OpenVelenje, Slovenia
Women’s doubles.(with Xu Yan) Bronze 12–15 January 2005 ITTF Pro Tour Liebherr Slovenian OpenVelenje, Slovenia
Women’s singles. Silver 12 June 2005 ITTF Pro Tour Volkswagen Korean OpenSuncheon, Jeollanam-do, South Korea
Women’s singles Silver 19 June 2005 ITTF Pro Tour TMS Chinese Taipei OpenTaipei, Chinese Taipei
Women’s singles Gold 10 July 2005 ITTF Pro Tour Liebherr US OpenFort Lauderdale, Florida, USA
Women’s singles Bronze 2005 Asian ChampionshipsJeju-do, South Korea
Women’s team. Gold 30 November 2005 23rd SEA GamesMalate, Manila, Philippines
Mixed doubles.(with Yang Zi) Silver 2 December 2005 23rd SEA GamesMalate, Manila, Philippines
Women’s doubles(with Zhang Xueling) Gold 3 December 2005 23rd SEA GamesMalate, Manila, Philippines
Women’s singles. Silver 4 December 2005 23rd SEA GamesMalate, Manila, Philippines
Women’s singles. Silver 11 December 2005 ITTF Pro Tour Grand FinalsFuzhou, People’s Republic of China
2006
Women’s singles. Bronze 22 January 2006 ITTF Pro Tour Liebherr Slovenian OpenVelenje, Slovenia
Women’s doubles.(with Zhang Xueling) Bronze 22 January 2006 ITTF Pro Tour Liebherr Slovenian OpenVelenje, Slovenia
Women’s doubles.(with Zhang Xueling) Bronze 27 January 2006 ITTF Pro Tour Liebherr Croatian OpenZagreb, Croatia
Women’s team.(with Zhang Xueling, Sharon Tan, Xu Yan and Zena Sim) Gold 20 March 2006 18th Commonwealth GamesMelbourne, Victoria, Australia
Mixed doubles.(with Cai Xiaoli) Silver 24 March 2006 18th Commonwealth GamesMelbourne, Victoria, Australia
Women’s doubles.(with Zhang Xueling) Gold 25 March 2006 18th Commonwealth GamesMelbourne, Victoria, Australia
Women’s singles. Silver 26 March 2006 18th Commonwealth GamesMelbourne, Victoria, Australia
Women’s singles Silver 5 March 2006 Asian CupKobe, Japan
Women’s singles. Bronze 1 October 2006 ITTF Sinkiang Women’s World CupÜrümqi, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, People’s Republic of China
Women’s singles. Gold 1–5 November 2006 ITTF Pro Tour Eurosib Russian OpenSaint Petersburg, Russia
Women’s doubles.(with Sun Beibei) Gold 5 November 2006 ITTF Pro Tour Eurosib Russian OpenSaint Petersburg, Russia
Women’s singles Silver 12 November 2006 ITTF Pro Tour Liebherr German OpenBayreuth, Bavaria, Germany
Women’s doubles.(with Sun Beibei) Gold 12 November 2006 ITTF Pro Tour Liebherr German OpenBayreuth, Bavaria, Germany
Women’s team(with Sun Beibei, Tan Paey Fern, Tan Yanzhen and Zhang Xueling) Silver 1–15 December 2006 15th Asian GamesDoha, Qatar
Women’s singles Bronze 1–15 December 2006 15th Asian GamesDoha, Qatar
Mixed doubles(with Yang Zi) Bronze 1–15 December 2006 15th Asian GamesDoha, Qatar
Women’s singles. Bronze 17 December 2006 ITTF Pro Tour Grand FinalsHong Kong
Women’s doubles.(with Sun Beibei) Bronze 17 December 2006 ITTF Pro Tour Grand FinalsHong Kong
Women’s singles. Bronze 21 December 2006 Tournament of Champions Changsha, People’s Republic of China
2007
Women’s singles Gold 26 August 2007 ITTF Pro Tour Chinese Taipei OpenTaipei, Chinese Taipei
Women’s doubles.(with Sun Beibei) Silver 26 August 2007 ITTF Pro Tour Chinese Taipei OpenTaipei, Chinese Taipei
Women’s team.(with Sun Beibei, Wang Yuegu, Tan Paey Fern and Yu Mengyu) Silver 19 September 2007 18th China Mobile Asian Table Tennis ChampionshipsYangzhou, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China
Women’s doubles.(with Wang Yuegu) Silver 4 November 2007 ITTF Pro Tour Liebherr French OpenToulouse, France
Women’s singles. Bronze 4 November 2007 ITTF Pro Tour Liebherr French OpenToulouse, France
Women’s team(with Sun Beibei, Tan Paey Fern, Wang Yuegu and Yu Mengyu) Gold 5 December 2007 24th SEA GamesNakhon Ratchasima (Korat), Thailand
Mixed doubles(with Yang Zi) Gold 8 December 2007 24th SEA GamesNakhon Ratchasima (Korat), Thailand
Women’s doubles(with Wang Yuegu) Silver 9 December 2007 24th SEA GamesNakhon Ratchasima (Korat), Thailand
2008
Women’s team.(with Feng Tianwei, Wang Yuegu, Sun Beibei and Yu Mengyu) Silver 1 March 2008 Evergrande Real Estate World Team Table Tennis ChampionshipsGuangzhou, Guangdong, People’s Republic of China
Women’s doubles.(with Sun Beibei) Silver 16 March 2008 ITTF Pro Tour Kuwait OpenKuwait City, Kuwait
Women’s singles . Bronze 29–30 March 2008 2008 Asian CupSapporo, Hokkaidō Prefecture, Japan
Women’s singles. Silver 20 April 2008 ITTF Pro Tour Brazil OpenBelo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Women’s doubles.(with Sun Beibei) Silver 20 April 2008 ITTF Pro Tour Brazil OpenBelo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Women’s singles. Gold 27 April 2008 ITTF Pro Tour Chile OpenSantiago, Chile
Women’s doubles.(with Sun Beibei) Silver 27 April 2008 ITTF Pro Tour Chile OpenSantiago, Chile
Women’s team.(with Feng Tianwei and Wang Yuegu) Silver 24 May 2008 ITTF Pro Tour Volkswagen Japan OpenYokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan
Women’s doubles.(with Sun Beibei) Gold 8 June 2008 ITTF Pro Tour TMS Singapore OpenSingapore
Women’s team(with Feng Tianwei and Wang Yuegu) Silver 13–17 August 2008 2008 Summer OlympicsBeijing, People’s Republic of China
Women’s team(with Feng Tianwei and Wang Yuegu) Gold 22 November 2008 ITTF Pro Tour ERKE German OpenBerlin, Germany
Women’s doubles(with Sun Beibei) Gold 14 December 2008 ITTF Volkswagen Pro Tour Grand FinalsMacau
2009
Women’s singles. Bronze 11 January 2009 Tournament of Champions Changsha, People’s Republic of China
2010
Women’s team; ; ; .(with Feng Tianwei, Sun Beibei, Wang Yuegu and Yu Mengyu) Gold 30 May 2010 Liebherr World Team Table Tennis ChampionshipsMoscow, Russia
Women’s singles. Bronze 15 August 2010 ITTF Pro Tour Korean OpenIncheon, South Korea
Women’s team.(with Feng Tianwei, Wang Yuegu, Sun Beibei, Yu Mengyu) Silver 1 October 2010 World Team CupDubai, UAE
Women’s team.(with Feng Tianwei, Sun Beibei, Wang Yuegu and Yu Mengyu) Gold 8 October 2010 19th Commonwealth GamesNew Delhi, India
Women’s doubles.(with Sun Beibei) Gold 14 October 2010 19th Commonwealth GamesNew Delhi, India
Women’s team.(with Feng Tianwei, Sun Beibei, Wang Yuegu and Yu Mengyu) Silver 16 November 2010 16th Asian GamesGuangZhou, China
2011
Women’s doubles.(with Yu Mengyu) Bronze 22 January 2011 ITTF Pro Tour Slovenian OpenVelenje, Slovenia
Women’s singles. Silver 12 June 2011 ITTF Pro Tour Brazil OpenRio de Janeiro, Brazil
Women’s doubles.(with Wang Yuegu) Gold 12 June 2011 ITTF Pro Tour Brazil OpenRio de Janeiro, Brazil
Women’s doubles.(with Wang Yuegu) Silver 10 July 2011 ITTF Pro Tour Japan OpenKobe, Japan
Women’s team.(with Feng Tianwei, Wang Yuegu, Sun Beibei, Yu Mengyu) Bronze 5 November 2011 World Team CupMagdeburg, Germany
Women’s doubles.(with Wang Yuegu) Bronze 27 November 2011 ITTF Pro Tour Grand FinalsLondon, England
2012
Women’s doubles.(with Sun Beibei) Silver 11 February 2012 ITTF GAC Group World Tour Qatar OpenDoha, Qatar
Women’s team(with Feng Tianwei and Wang Yuegu) Bronze 7 August 2012 2012 Summer OlympicsLondon, United Kingdom