Laurens Devos

Laurens Devos (born 15 August 2000) is a Belgian table tennis player who was the Paralympic champion in men's singles class 9. He has also won four European titles and most recently, a world title for his country.

Laurens Devos
Personal information
NationalityBelgian
Born (2000-08-15) 15 August 2000
Malle, Belgium
Height165 cm (5 ft 5 in)
Sport
Country Belgium
SportPara table tennis
DisabilityMild hemiplegia
Disability classC9
ClubSokah Hoboken
Coached byCarlo Agnello
Medal record
Para table tennis
Representing  Belgium
Paralympic Games
2016 Rio de JaneiroSingles class 9
World Championships
2018 LaskoSingles class 9
European Championships
2015 VejleSingles class 9
2015 VejleTeams class 9
2017 LaskoSingles class 9
2017 LaskoTeams class 9
2019 HelsingborgSingles class 9
2019 HelsingborgTeams class 9

Laurens Devos lives in Oostmalle.[1][2] The son of Mario Devos and Christel, he has 2 brothers and a twin sister, Isabel. His 6 years older brother Robin Devos is as of 14 September 2016 the second-highest ranked able-bodied Belgian table tennis player, ranked number 119 on the World Ranking.[3]

Caused by a lack of oxygen at birth, Laurens suffers from mild hemiplegia which results in a loss of mobility on the right side of his body.[4][5] He plays left-handed. He studies at the Topsportschool in Leuven, where he is the only student with a disability.[6]

Sporting career

Laurens Devos was ranked world number 2 in his class before going to the Paralympics. In 2014 he won the GDF Suez Trophy (the award for most promising young Belgian para-athlete).[7] He won the 2015 European Championships in Vejle, Denmark.[1][2] He is national table tennis champion in his age category (able-bodied category).[5][6]

With his victory over Dutch Gerben Last in 3 straight sets, Devos became the youngest player ever to win table tennis gold at the Paralympics.[8]

At the 2016 ITTF Star Awards, Devos won Male Para Table Tennis Star, the award for Paralympic table tennis player of the year.[9]

Devos reached the first round of the 2016 World Junior Table Tennis Championships, but then lost 4-3 from the Austrian Andreas Levenko.[10]

On 17 December 2016, Devos was named the Paralympian of the Year at the Belgian Sportsman of the year ceremony.[11]

He won his first world championship title in 2018 in Lasko, Slovenia by defeating Iurii Nozdrunov of Russia.[12]

Notes
  1. Matthyssen, Kristin (12 September 2016). "Familie Laurens Devos stomverbaasd over gouden plak: "Bangelijk!"". Gazet van Antwerpen (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 September 2016.
  2. "Laurens Devos" (in Dutch). Sporza.be. 31 August 2016. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
  3. "World Ranking". International Table Tennis Federation. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 14 September 2016.
  4. "Laurens Devos, un ado en or". La Libre Belgique (in French). 12 September 2016.
  5. Bernaers, Dieter (13 September 2016). "Mentaliteit wint van fysieke drempels". De Morgen (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 September 2016.
  6. Frans, Koen (13 September 2016). ""Laurens kan ook medailles winnen op de gewone Olympische Spelen"". Sport Planet (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 September 2016.
  7. "Rolstoelatlete Marieke Vervoort laureate Nationale Trofee Victor Boin 2014". De Morgen. Belga. 11 March 2015. Retrieved 14 September 2016.
  8. "Belgium's Laurens Devos makes table tennis history". Paralympic.org. 12 September 2016. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
  9. "Laurens Devos wint internationale Star Award" (in Dutch). De Morgen. Belga. 8 December 2016. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  10. "Cnudde naar tweede ronde in enkelspel op WK tafeltennis voor junioren, Loyen en Lung naar kwartfinales in dubbelspel" (in Dutch). Het Belang van Limburg. Belga. 5 December 2016. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
  11. Belgian Paralympic Committee (19 December 2016). "Laurens Devos named Belgian Paralympian of the Year". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  12. "Newly crowned World champion, another quest starts Laurens Devos". ITTF.com. 23 October 2018.
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