At the WTT Champions Yokohama 2026 table tennis tournament, the siblings Tomokazu Harimoto and Miwa Harimoto both won the singles championship. A sense of crisis is seeping out from 'Table Tennis Kingdom' China.

On the 9th, the men's and women's singles finals were held. In the men's singles, world No. 5 Tomokazu Harimoto defeated world No. 31 Oh Junsung (South Korea) 4-1, and in the women's singles, world No. 3 Miwa Harimoto defeated world No. 5 Chen Xingtong (China) 4-2, with the siblings both achieving victory.

A sports blogger with over 1.3 million followers on China's social media platform Weibo pointed out "concerns about the training system in the Chinese table tennis world." While mentioning that world No. 1 Chinese players Wang Chuqin (men) and Sun Yingsha (women) were absent from this tournament, the blogger also pointed out, "Miwa Harimoto is certainly the biggest threat to Chinese table tennis in women's singles."

And he commented, "This 18-year-old girl (Miwa) is not only technically superior overall but also mentally strong, and has more tournament experience than many senior players. She is no longer 'a player with a promising future,' but 'a player who is emerging right now.'"

Furthermore, he mentioned, "What we should truly be wary of is not failing to win the championship in this tournament, but rather the fact that young players overseas are accelerating their chase (of China)." He expressed a sense of crisis for China, where there is no surge of young talent, stating, "Young players from Japan, South Korea, and Europe are increasingly playing aggressively and securing victories. Player development in the Chinese table tennis world can no longer be postponed."

Han Qiaosheng, a prominent Chinese table tennis commentator, also touched upon Miwa Harimoto's victory after successively defeating three Chinese players, and Tomokazu Harimoto's consistent play until the final, achieving consecutive victories. He pointed out, "Young players overseas are rapidly improving. We need to face this gap squarely and reflect on it thoroughly."

Comments from Chinese netizens include: "Winning as siblings must be a great feeling," "The Harimoto siblings' level is comparable to the main players in the Chinese national team," "It's becoming normal for (China) to miss out on victory now. That's incredible," "Miwa is only 18 years old," "In China, players are 29 and still 'under development'," "Hahaha, China is a joke," "It's still okay for the (Chinese) women's team because 3 players reached the semifinals, but the men's team couldn't even reach the quarterfinals," and "The facts have already proven it: Japanese table tennis is rising, and Chinese table tennis is declining." (Translated/Edited by Kitada)