Thirty-two players checked in at the CCTTA club on Denison Street in Markham on Sunday, October 11, 2026, and play started at 1:00 pm. Eight matches later, one player was still unbeaten. Colin Youtong Chen (1180) won the CCTTA Top 8 U1400, finishing 8-0. He did not drop a game until the final. There, his friend and training partner Cyril Yau (1150) took him the full five games before Colin won it 11-8 in the decider.
The final was the headline, but the day had plenty of other stories. The top seed went out in the round of 16. A 172-rated player beat a 963-rated player in the groups. Cyril came back from two games down to stay alive. And seven knockout matches went to a fifth game.
Format: Eight Groups, a 32-Player Draw and Sudden Death at 10-10
The U1400 Singles event started with eight round-robin groups of four, every match played best of three. Nobody went home after the groups: all 32 players advanced into a 32-player knockout bracket, seeded from their group finishes.
Knockout matches were best of five. From the groups through the semifinals, a sudden-death point at 10-10 decided the game. The final and the third-place match went back to standard deuce, where you need a two-point lead.
Group Stage: Eight Winners and a Wave of Upsets
All eight top seeds won their groups, but only one group ended with every player where the ratings put them.
- Ethan Ma (172) beat Prince Dimude (963) 11-9, 9-11, 11-9 in Group E. That was a 791-point gap, the biggest upset of the day.
- Hossein Ahmadian (100) beat Diana Qiu (778) 11-9, 11-10 in Group C, winning the second game on the sudden-death point.
- Syed Azeemuddin Hussaini (176) beat Faramarz Arjmand (628) 8-11, 11-8, 11-8 in Group F, coming from a game down.
- Eden Ma (242) beat Frank Gao (586) 6-11, 11-4, 11-7 in Group G, also from a game down.
- Mehdi Monsif (636) beat Prince Dimude (963) 11-7, 11-8 to finish second in Group E.
- Santiago Vargas (953) beat Herbert Chong (1269) 11-5, 11-7 to win Group C ahead of the third seed.
- Arul Rajendran (954) beat Samy Saad (1202) 11-6, 2-11, 11-8 to win Group D.
- Andy Cheng (244) beat Mayukh Sengupta (547) 11-8, 11-10 in Group H.
Group winners (all 3-0): A – Edward Xin · B – Ethan Leung · C – Santiago Vargas · D – Arul Rajendran · E – Colin Youtong Chen · F – Zac Shum · G – Mykola Shkil · H – Cyril Yau. The full tables are on the group standings page.
The Knockout Path: Comebacks and a Top-Seed Exit
The round of 32 had three five-game matches. Zhen Yang Dai (856) came back from two games down against Grace Liang (1030), winning 8-11, 10-11, 11-9, 11-10, 11-8. Prince Dimude got past Group D winner Arul Rajendran 3-2 (11-10, 7-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-8). Wanwei Evan Huang beat George Yu 3-2, winning the decider 11-3.
The round of 16 brought the biggest knockout upset. Emily Xin (1056) beat top seed Edward Xin (1347) 11-5, 7-11, 11-9, 11-5. Cyril Yau had the closest escape. Herbert Chong won the first two games 11-8, 11-8, but Cyril won the next three 11-8, 11-9, 11-9. Colin beat Samy Saad 3-0, Mykola Shkil beat Benson Zhao 3-0, Santiago Vargas beat Zhen Yang Dai 3-1, Wanwei Evan Huang beat Prince Dimude 3-0, Zac Shum beat Jasper Chu 3-0 and Ethan Leung beat Mehdi Monsif 3-0.
Three of the four quarter-finals were group winner against group winner, and two of them went the full five games.
Zac Shum vs Ethan Leung. Zac (Group F) and Ethan (Group B) had not lost a match between them all day. Zac took the second game on the sudden-death point to level at 1-1. Ethan then won the third 11-8 and pulled away in the fourth to win 11-9, 10-11, 11-8, 11-3.
Wanwei Evan Huang vs Cyril Yau. Cyril had just come back from 0-2 down against Herbert Chong, and he had to do it again here. Cyril won the first game on the sudden-death point, but Evan won the next two 11-9, 11-7. Down 2-1, Cyril won the fourth 11-9 and the fifth 11-8: 3-2 (11-10, 9-11, 7-11, 11-9, 11-8). That was his second five-game escape in a row.
Santiago Vargas vs Mykola Shkil. The first two games went to the sudden-death point, one each, and Santiago took the third 11-9. Mykola forced a fifth with an 11-8 fourth game. Santiago (953) pulled away in the decider to beat the 1157-rated Group G winner 3-2 (10-11, 11-10, 11-9, 8-11, 11-6).
In the other quarter-final, Colin Youtong Chen beat Emily Xin 3-0 (11-7, 11-10, 11-3), ending the run that had knocked out the top seed.
Semifinals: Straight Games All Round
Both semifinals finished 3-0. Colin Youtong Chen beat Santiago Vargas 11-8, 11-8, 11-10, winning the last game on the sudden-death point. Santiago had won Group C and beaten Mykola Shkil, but couldn't take a game off Colin.
Cyril Yau beat second seed Ethan Leung (1273) 11-5, 11-6, 11-9. Ethan had not dropped a game in the groups.
Ethan Leung finished third and Santiago Vargas fourth.
The Final, Game by Game: Chen vs Yau
Friends and training partners Cyril Yau and Colin Youtong Chen met in the final, playing for the U1400 title and, as @tt_tube_'s live post put it, bragging rights at practice. Colin had not dropped a game all day. Cyril had already come back to win twice in five games. With standard deuce back for the final, neither player could rely on a single point at 10-10.
- Game 1 – Yau 12-10. Cyril won the opening game past deuce. It was the first game Colin had lost all day.
- Game 2 – Chen 11-7. Colin levelled the match at 1-1.
- Game 3 – Chen 11-1. This was the most one-sided game of the final, and Colin led 2-1.
- Game 4 – Yau 13-11. This was the comeback of the day. Colin led 10-6 and was one point from the title. Cyril saved all four championship points, then won the game 13-11 to level the final 2-2.
- Game 5 – Chen 11-8. Colin held his nerve in the decider and won the title on championship point.
Final: Colin Youtong Chen d. Cyril Yau 3-2 (10-12, 11-7, 11-1, 11-13, 11-8).
Congratulations to Colin, and huge respect to Cyril for the fight. Colin finished the day 8-0. Cyril had one loss, to his training partner, by three points in the fifth game.
Final Placings
| Place | Player | Rating | Group (finish) | Day record (matches / games) |
| 1 | Colin Youtong Chen | 1180 | E (1st) | 8-0 / 21-2 |
| 2 | Cyril Yau | 1150 | H (1st) | 7-1 / 20-7 |
| 3 | Ethan Leung | 1273 | B (1st) | 6-1 / 15-4 |
| 4 | Santiago Vargas | 953 | C (1st) | 6-1 / 15-6 |
| QF | Mykola Shkil | 1157 | G (1st) | 5-1 / 14-4 |
| QF | Zac Shum | 1167 | F (1st) | 5-1 / 13-3 |
| QF | Wanwei Evan Huang | 1048 | G (2nd) | 4-2 / 13-7 |
| QF | Emily Xin | 1056 | H (2nd) | 4-2 / 10-7 |
See every result on the winners page and the full knockout bracket.
Standout Performers and Breakout Players
- Colin Youtong Chen won the title at 8-0 and 21-2 in games. Both of the games he lost came in the final.
- Cyril Yau won two five-game knockout matches, both from behind, beat the second seed in straight games and saved four championship points in the final.
- Santiago Vargas (953) beat the third seed to win his group, then beat Mykola Shkil in five games to reach the semifinals.
- Emily Xin (1056) knocked out top seed Edward Xin and reached the quarter-finals.
- Zhen Yang Dai (856) came back from 0-2 down against Grace Liang.
- Ethan Ma (172) beat a player rated 791 points higher, the biggest upset of the day.
CCTTA Top 8 U1400 by the Numbers
- 32 players, 8 groups, 32-player knockout draw
- 79 matches played
- 220 games and 3,887 points
- 7 five-game knockout matches, including two quarter-finals and the final
- 28 games reached 10-10
- 791: the largest rating gap overcome (Ethan Ma over Prince Dimude)
- 21-2: Colin Youtong Chen's games record across eight wins
Curious what those numbers in brackets mean? Our guide to how TTCAN ratings work explains how Canadian table tennis ratings are calculated and why results like these move them.
What's Next
Every match from the CCTTA Top 8 U1400 is available on Table Tennis Tube, including scores for every game. You can browse the groups, the full match list, the player list and the bracket. Each player's page shows their match-by-match path through the day.
Thanks to CCTTA for hosting, and to all 32 players for a full afternoon of competitive table tennis.
Running your own event? The CCTTA Top 8 U1400 used Table Tennis Tube for everything from the group draw to every score and the final bracket. Create your tournament for free. Players and spectators can follow along on one public link.
