Choi Hyo-joo | |
Nationality: | Chinese (before 2013) South Korean (after 2013) |
Birth Name: | Yao Yao |
Birth Date: | 15 April 1998 |
Birth Place: | Jiangsu, China |
Playingstyle: | Left-handed shakehand grip[1] |
Hrank: | 36 (February 2016)[2] |
Crank: | 69 (20 February 2024)[3] |
Height: | 155 cm[4] |
Weight: | 50 kg |
Hangul: | 최효주 |
Rr: | Choe Hyo-ju |
Mr: | Ch'oe Hyochu |
Yao Yao | |
T: | 姚堯 |
P: | Yáo Yáo |
Choi Hyo-joo (born 15 April 1998) is a Chinese-born South Korean table tennis player.[5] [6] Born in China as Yao Yao, she became a naturalized South Korean citizen in November 2013.[7]
She represented South Korea at the team event in the 2020 Summer Olympics.[8]
A Jiangsu native, Choi (then known as Yao Yao) attended a table tennis school in Qingdao, Shandong at a young age.[9] In 2009, she finished 8th in the national cadet tournament, behind the likes of Chen Meng, Gu Yuting, Shao Jieni, and Zhu Yuling.[10] She was spotted by Choi Young-il, head coach of the Korean club Samsung Life, who persuaded her to go to South Korea and acquire Korean nationality. Several people helped out with her naturalization: the mother of Jeong Sang-eun, another Chinese-born South Korean player, and Coach Choi's older brother, a public employee, who volunteered to foster her.[11] Later, when she became a naturalized Korean, she adopted the surname Choi.
Women's singles
Women's doubles