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Posted at 12:55 a.m., Tuesday, May 5, 2009

China sweeps all golds at table tennis worlds

Associated Press

YOKOHAMA, Japan — Wang Hao defeated compatriot Wang Liqin in the men's singles final Tuesday to give China an impressive sweep of the gold medals at the table tennis world championships.

The top-seeded Wang took control from the first set on his way to an 11-9, 13-11, 11-5, 11-9 win over the fifth-seeded Wang at Yokohama Arena.

Olympic champion Zhang Yining defeated defending champion and fellow Chinese Guo Yue in six sets to win the women's singles title.

China won all gold medals on offer at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and swept the podium here in both men's and women's singles.

Wang Liqin upset Olympic gold medalist Ma Lin in the semifinals Monday but was no match for the Beijing silver medalist in Tuesday's men's final.

Wang had a five-point lead in the final game but saw the gap closed to 10-9 before winning with a backhand that Wang Liqin returned long.

Guo looked set to defend her title in the women's final before the top-seeded Zhang recovered from a two-set deficit for a 10-12, 3-11, 11-2, 11-7, 11-7, 11-9 win.

Zhang erased a 4-1 disadvantage in the final game and won when Guo missed a forehand smash.

China also won the mixed doubles title, as well as men's and women's doubles. The only medals China didn't win were the bronze medals in the women's and men's doubles, won by South Korea and Japan respectively.