The rise and fall of Feng Tianwei, Singapore’s most successful Olympian

SINGAPORE — After nine years of representing Singapore in table tennis, Feng Tianwei’s career as a national paddler has come to an end. The 30-year-old is now in limbo after her contract was not renewed by the Singapore Table Tennis Association. TODAY looks at the highs and lows of Singapore’s most successful Olympian’s international career:

March 2007: Moved to Singapore under the Foreign Sports Talent Scheme.

April 2007: Made her international debut for the Republic at the ITTF Pro Tour Volkswagen Korean Open.

August 2007: Won her first medal – a silver – for Singapore in the Women’s Singles event at the Chinese Taipei Open. She was beaten 3-2 in the final by compatriot Li Jiawei.

March 2008: Won a silver medal in the women’s team event at the World Team Championships in Guangzhou.

May 2008: Broke into the top-10 world rankings for the first time.

August 2008: Won a silver medal in the women’s team event at the 2008 Olympics, ending Singapore’s 48-year medal drought at the Games. Was awarded the Pingat Jasa Gemilang (Meritorious Service Medal), along with team-mates Li Jiawei and Wang Yuegu, for the achievement.

November 2008: Won her first professional singles title at the Polish Open.

December 2008: Assumed the mantle of Singapore’s top-ranked female paddler after reaching the world No. 6 spot.

December 2009: Won two gold medals in the individual and women’s team events at the SEA Games in Laos.

February 2010: Received the Singapore Table Tennis Association’s inaugural Best Player of the Year award.

May 2010: Named the Sportswoman of the Year for 2009 by the Singapore National Olympic Council at the Singapore Sports Awards. Also won the Team of the Year prize at the event.

May 2010: Led the national women’s team to gold at the World Team Table Tennis Championships in Moscow, defeating China 3-1 in the final.

October 2010: Won two gold medals – in the women’s singles and women’s team event – at the Commonwealth Games in India.

November 2010: Led Singapore to silver in the women’s team event at the Asian Games in Guangzhou.

November 2011: Won two gold medals (singles and women’s doubles) and a silver (mixed doubles) at the SEA Games in Indonesia.

April 2012: Led Singapore to silver in the World Team Table Tennis Championships. She also managed to reach a career-high ranking of world No. 2.

August 2012: Won bronze medals in the women’s singles and women’s team event at the London Olympics. She was also the flag bearer for Singapore at the Games’ opening ceremony.

May 2013: Secured a bronze medal in the women’s doubles at the World Table Tennis Championships in France.

December 2013: Omitted from the National SEA Games squad as the STTA wanted to use that tournament to groom their next generation of players.

May 2014: Led Singapore to bronze in the women’s team event at the World Championships.

October 2014: Won two bronze medals, in the women’s singles and team events, at the Asian Games in Incheon.

She also began to struggle with injuries and was told by doctors that the cartilages in her knees were worn out, which led to her trimming her competition schedule, and embarking on a diet, which saw her lose about five kilogrammes.

March 2015: Won Singapore women’s first-ever gold medal at the Asian Cup.

June 2015: Crashed out of the women’s singles event at the SEA Games on home soil after suffering a shock 1-3 loss to 107th-ranked Suthasini Sawettabut of Thailand in the group stage. Despite being one of the top-ranked players in the Games, her only medal came in the form of a silver in the women’s doubles.

October 2015: Along with partner Yu Mengyu, lost in the final of the women’s doubles at the ITTF Polish Open despite being the top-seeds. The aftermath of this defeat saw both Feng and Yu involved in a coaching dispute, which eventually led to the redeployment of national women’s head coach Jing Junhong and the termination of men’s head coach Yang Chuanning.

January 2016: Suffered another shock loss at the Hungarian Open as she was beaten 3-4 by unranked Japanese Natsumi Nakahata in the first round of the tournament.

August 2016: Failed to win a medal at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. She made a quarter-final exit in the women’s singles, and was also part of the women’s team that lost to Japan in the bronze medal play-off in the women’s team event.

October 2016: Axed from the women’s national team as part of STTA’s plans for rejuvenation.