Sanctioned for throwing his racket after his defeat in the singles quarter-final of the European table tennis championships on Saturday, Félix Lebrun regretted his action. He admitted to having been “very afraid” of not being able to play his doubles final with his brother Alexis on Sunday, where the two Frenchmen finally won the gold medal.
While he had just been overthrown by the German Benedikt Duda 4-3, after having notably had a match point, the youngest of the Lebrun Brothers (18 years old) threw his racket in anger and sadness on the ground, a gesture directly punished with a red card.
“Right away I saw that I could be disqualified from the doubles final,” the Frenchman said after the match, about the gold medal match he ultimately won alongside his brother Alexis. (21 years old) Sunday against the Swedes Anton Kallberg and Truls Moregard (11-2, 11-6, 11-8).
“It’s a bit of a tough match for me, I have a lot of opportunities to go further in the table and emotionally it gave out at the end,” explained the young man, who “obviously regrets” his gesture . “I didn’t want to hurt anyone, I tried to get angry where there was no one, but I won’t do it again,” he promised, referring to “a little embarrassment and shame”, felt immediately after his reaction.
Ultimately, the men’s doubles formed by the Lebrun brothers was not sanctioned. Félix Lebrun, however, will not be able to record the points acquired during these European Championships in Linz (Austria), and will have to reimburse a damaged screen part. Note also that Alexis Lebrun was also crowned European champion in singles.
“A reaction linked to his age”
“I find that one of the referees was very understanding, and sought to defend the interests of the sport,” said coach Nathanaël Molin. Without defending his player’s gesture, the latter believes that “Félix had a reaction linked to his age, and his level of expectation (…) He regrets this gesture, he did it, we have to live with it. “.
“He scared himself. I think he’s going to talk about it with his parents. Félix is a champion, he will bounce back,” he concluded.
