TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan Paralympic men's singles table tennis competitor Cheng Ming-chih (程銘志) lost in the finals to Norway’s Tommy Urhaug, earning a silver medal in the TT5 category reserved for wheelchair players at the Paris Paralympics on Wednesday (Sept. 4).

Cheng lost to Urhaug by a final score of 11-5, 7-11, 11-7, 7-11, 9-11. Urhuag is a gold medalist in the TT5 category from the 2012 London Paralympics Games.

Cheng was congratulated by Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰), who posted on Facebook his pride in Cheng’s accomplishments. Cho also looked forward to his continued presence in future international competitions on behalf of Taiwan.

Chuo said Cheng has competed in three Paralympic games and has abundant experience, remarkable physical strength, and intelligence. Furthermore, Chou said he worked closely with his coaches to put forth his best game.

Cheng, 45, began playing table tennis as an elementary school student and eventually became a nationally ranked youth table tennis competitor. Unfortunately, his athletic career was almost derailed as he was struck by a drunk driver, which led to the amputation of his left leg, per CNA.

Shortly after his accident, he closed himself off to the world and refused to play table tennis. However, persuasion from both his coach and his father led him to return to competitive table tennis.

His hard work and dedication allowed him to make a name for himself in Paralympic competition. In the 2016 Rio Paralympics, Cheng and Lin Yan-hong (林晏弘) won a silver medal in the TT5 men's doubles table tennis competition. Unfortunately, Cheng did not replicate his success in the Tokyo Paralympics. 

His road to an Olympic medal included defeating the 2016 Rio Paralympic gold medalist Cao Ning-ning (曹寧寧), punching his ticket in the quarterfinal round.

In the quarterfinals, Cheng battled Serbian competitor Mitar Palikuca 11-3, 15-13, 11-7, successfully advancing to the gold medal match.