Astra Rosetta Edwards-Bennett (October 30, 1981) is a Trinidadian table tennis player.
Born in Port of Spain, Edwards came to prominence in 1997, becoming the top junior female player in Trinidad and Tobago. That year she won the Silver Bowl, the National Junior Championship, and the Port of Spain Classified B Division. In international competitions, she won a silver medal at the Puerto Rico Federation Championships in the junior girls' doubles event with Shane Bhopa, three bronzes at the Caribbean Federation Championships in the girls' singles event, team event, and mixed doubles with Terrence Kallicharran. At the Barbados Championships she took silver in the girls' doubles with Bhopa and a bronze in the singles and mixed doubles, again with Kallicharran. [1]
As an adult, she participated at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games [2] and the 2007 Caribbean Tennis Championship. [3] Astra has also won the Nathan Petroleum Services Singles Tournament at the PowerGen Sports Club in Penal on 1 November 2008. Astra first beat Avernelle Abraham 8-11, 11-8, 11-2, 11-3 in the semi-finals and then went on to beat Kristin Scipio 10-12, 11-6, 11-6, 11-5 in the finals to capture the title. With this victory, Astra has also reclaimed her position in the Trinidad and Tobago National Table tennis squad, and will travel with them to the regional games being held in Jamaica in December 2008.
Edwards' mother, Verna, and sister, Aleena, are also competitive table tennis players. [4] Astra Edwards works as a sales agent when not competing. Her fiancé is Kyle Bennett.
Zoran Primorac is a retired male table tennis player from Croatia. He is a two-time winner of the World Cup and one of only three table tennis players to have competed at seven Olympic Games. His highest ITTF world ranking was number 2, in 1998.
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Elvis Dalsires Contreras de los Santos is a male volleyball player from the Dominican Republic, who won the silver medal with the men's national team at the 2006 Pan American Cup in Mexicali, Mexico. He currently plays as a wing-spiker for Kazma sporting club.
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The 14th Central American and Caribbean Junior Championships were held in the Estadio Sixto Escobar in San Juan, Puerto Rico between 14–16 July 2000.
Melissa Tapper is an Australian table tennis player. After competing at the 2012 Summer Paralympics, she represented Australia at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in elite non-Paralympic competition. In March 2016, she became the first Australian athlete to qualify for both the Summer Olympics and Summer Paralympics.
Virgil Soeroredjo is a former Surinamese badminton player and now coach. He competed for Suriname at the 2012 Summer Olympics. He also competed for Suriname at 3 Pan Am Games: the 2003 Pan American Games, the 2007 Pan American Games & the 2011 Pan American Games. As a young badminton player of the club SCVU in Suriname Virgil Soeroredjo won numerous juniors titles and was soon selected to represent his country abroad winning several juniors medals at Caribbean, Central American and South American events. Much of his success was with his doubles partner Mitchel Wongsodikromo.
Ariel Yenhua Hsing is an American table tennis player who competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics.
Lily Ann Zhang is an American table tennis player who competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London with teammates Ariel Hsing and Erica Wu. She also competed in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio with teammates Jiaqi Zheng and Jennifer Wu. She is a five time US national champion in women's singles. Zhang has won the US national championship in 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017, and 2019. In 2011, she was a bronze medalist in women's singles and women's team at the Pan American Games and won the women's doubles title at the Qatar Peace and Sport Cup. She is currently a member of the United States National Women's team. She has been ranked as high as #2 in the cadet (U-15) world ranking and #5 in the junior (U-18) world ranking.
Adriana Yamila Díaz González is a Puerto Rican table tennis player. As of November 2022 she was ranked 3 and 11 in the Table Tennis World Ranking according to the International Table Tennis Federation. Díaz is sponsored by Butterfly and Adidas. Adriana is the sister of the table tennis player, Melanie Díaz, and cousin of Brian Afanador.
Pooja Sahasrabudhe is an Indian International Table tennis player from Thane, Maharashtra. She comes from a humble middle-class background, and was born and brought up in Thane, Maharashtra. She took to Table tennis at the age of 9 in the year 2000 and showed keen interest and great talent in the sport. Her coach Mrs. Shailaja Gohad at the Boosters TT Academy, was quick to notice this and it was under her guidance that Pooja groomed as a player. She started representing India at a very young age. Pooja did her schooling and graduation from Thane and was absorbed by ONGC in the year 2010. Pooja recently got married and moved to Pune, India where she continues to train under the guidance of Mr. Rohit Chaudhary - a Shiv Chatrapatee Awardee and her husband Mr. Aniket Koparkar - an ex-international himself.
Julia Wu is a right-handed table tennis player from New Zealand who has represented New Zealand and Oceania in a number of international championships, including the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics held in Singapore and the 2015 Summer Universiade in Gwangju. She plays with a shakehand grip. In the 2009 ASB Young Sports Person of the Year Awards, Wu was a finalist in the Girls Table Tennis section.
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Oscar Roël Brandon is a Surinamese badminton player, coach and Olympic team manager. He competed for Suriname at the 1996 Summer Olympics as a badminton player in the Men's singles event. And he was "chef de mission" for Suriname at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London and the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Dylan Carter is a Trinidad and Tobago competitive swimmer. He is the Trinidad and Tobago record holder in the long course and short course 100 metre freestyle, 50 metre backstroke, 100 metre backstroke, 50 metre butterfly, and 100 metre butterfly. At the 2021 World Short Course Championships, he became the first swimmer representing Trinidad and Tobago to win a silver medal a World Short Course Championships, winning the silver medal in the 50 metre butterfly. In 2018 and 2022, he won the bronze medal in the 50 metre butterfly and the 50 metre freestyle at the World Short Course Championships, respectively. He was the male overall winner for the 2022 FINA Swimming World Cup, winning nine gold medals, five in Trinidad and Tobago record times, to become the first Trinidad and Tobago overall winner.
Eudice Chong is a professional tennis player from Hong Kong. Chong has thus far captured four singles and 24 doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit. In 2022, she reached career-highs in both singles and doubles when her WTA rankings peaked at No. 213 and No. 134, respectively.
Jada Renales is a Trinidadian badminton player. Renales is coached by her father, Derwin Renales, a former national badminton player. She was the national under-19 champion for three consecutive years. At the 2012-2016 Carebaco Junior International tournament, she was 6 times in the second place and 5 times in third place. In 2014, she represented her country competed at the Veracruz Central American and Caribbean Games. In 2017, she won double title at the Solo Open Championships. She clinched the women's and mixed doubles title, and also place second in the singles event. She also received the TTBA's 2012 Most Outstanding Female Junior, 2014 Female Player of the Year, and 2015 Junior Female Player of the Year.
Crystal Leefmans is a Surinamese badminton player. In 2010, she won the bronze medals at the Medellín South American Games in the mixed doubles and team event. In 2011, she won the mixed doubles title at the Carebaco International tournament in the individuals event of the Carebaco Games partnered with Mitchel Wongsodikromo. Leefmans was also the champion at the Suriname International tournament in 2012 and 2013. In 2018 she won the mixed doubles Carebaco International title again at home, this time partnering compatriot Dylan Darmohoetomo. She was the flagbearer for Suriname at the 2011 Pan Am Games.
Nicholas Paul is a Trinidadian track cyclist, who specializes in sprinting events.