Yu Mengyu (; born 18 August 1989) is a retired Singaporean table tennis player. Born in Liaoning, China, Yu left China in 2006 at the age of 17 to join the Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA) under the Foreign Sports Talent Scheme. In the same year, Yu made her international debut for Singapore.
Yu was part of the team who defeated China 3-1 to be crowned world champions in the 2010 World Team Table Tennis Championships in Moscow, Russia. She defeated Kasumi Ishikawa and Liu Shiwen consecutively in the women's team event at the 2012 Asian Table Tennis Championships, thereby helping Singapore secure the runner-up position. Yu represented Singapore in the 2016 and 2020 Summer Olympics. She was the flag bearer for Singapore during the 2020 Summer Olympics.
Yu’s career has been consistently plagued by injuries. This made it challenging for her to maintain a high participation rate and stable competitive performance in international competitions. Yu participated in two Olympic Games, being the only female table tennis athlete that secured the fourth place twice and the fifth place twice, but has yet to clinch an Olympic medal.
In 2021, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong of Singapore praised Yu at the National Day Rally, commending her spirit of “to be indomitable, to keep going and never give up” during the Tokyo Olympic Games. He referred to her as a representative of the "Singapore Spirit".
On 22 March 2022, Yu retired from the national team. She became STTA’s junior development squad assistant coach, then stepped down in 2023 to pursue a one-year Master of Public Administration programme at Nanyang Technological University, after becoming the first Singapore athlete to receive a full scholarship from the Nanyang Centre for Public Administration. Upon graduation, she joined national sports agency Sport Singapore and is currently responsible for major events and special projects.. In November 2022, she was awarded the Sportswoman of the Year in the Singapore Sports Awards 2022. In 2024, Yu was inducted into the Singapore Sport Hall of Fame.
On 6 August 2026, Yu gave birth to fraternal twins, a boy and a girl.
Early life Yu was born on 18 August 1989. She started practising table tennis from the age of five and eventually become a provincial player in 1999. She once secured the runner-up position in the Chinese national U17 competition.
During a competition in Beijing when she was 17, Yu was spotted by STTA coach Chen Yong, who invited her to join the Singapore set-up. With the opportunity to compete in international competitions, Yu accepted the invitation and joined the STTA under the Foreign Sports Talent Scheme. She became a Singapore citizen in 2006 and started representing the Singapore team in international competitions. Yu participated in the U21 event of the 2006 ITTF Singapore Open and secured the gold medal in women's singles.
Education
In March 2023, Yu left the table tennis scene for the time being to pursue a degree of Executive Master of Public Administration (EMPA) at Nanyang Technological University (NTU, world ranking 12th in the QS ranking in year 2022), after becoming the first Singapore athlete to receive a full scholarship from the Nanyang Centre for Public Administration (NCPA).
In January 2024, Yu graduated from NTU, receiving the degree of EMPA. She was awarded the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Scholarship by the NCPA. She also received the Best Thesis Award.
Career
International career 2008–09: ITTF World Tour Grand Finals
In December 2008, during the 2009 ITTF Pro Tour Grand Finals held in Macau, Yu reached the U21 final but ultimately lost to Japanese chopper Yuka Ishigaki, eventually becoming the runner-up.
In January 2010, during the 2009 ITTF Pro Tour Grand Finals held in Macau, Yu secured the U21 championship by defeating Romanian player Dodean 4-0 (11-9, 11-8, 11-5, 11-4) in the final.
2010 World Team Table Tennis Championships Together with Feng, Sun, and Wang, Yu was a member of the team at the Liebherr World Team Table Tennis Championships in Moscow. The team defeated China, 17-time winner and the reigning world champion, with a score of 3–1, which was one of the greatest upsets in table tennis history. This was the first time Singapore had lifted the Corbillon Cup.
In 2010, Yu was ranked as world No. 9. Her ranking contributed to raising the Singapore women's table tennis team up to the second place in the world and to the second seed in the Championship.
2011 Asian Table Tennis Championships In February–March 2011, during the 20th Asian Table Tennis Championships held in Macau, the Singapore women's team, consisting of Yu, Feng, Wang, Li, and Sun, won the semifinal against the Japanese team that composed of Ai Fukuhara, Kasumi Ishikawa, and Sayaka Hirano, with a score of 3-2, thereby securing their place in the final. In the decisive match of the semifinal, Yu defeated Kasumi Ishikawa 3-2, sealing the victory for Singapore and advancing them to the final. However, in the final, Singapore's team lost to the top-seeded Chinese team with an overall score of 1-3, eventually reaching the runner-up position. Notably, in the third game of the final, Yu earnt Singapore's sole point in the match by staging a comeback to win 3-2 (7-11, 6-11, 11-8, 11-5, 11-8) against Chinese player Liu Shiwen.
2012 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals Yu and her partner Feng Tianwei represented Singapore to participate in the 2012 International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Tour Grand Finals. In the competition, the duo of Yu and Feng successively defeated the Japanese pair of Hiroko Fujii and Misako Wakamiya with a score of 4-2 (11-2, 10-12, 12-10, 8-11, 12-10, 11-9) and the Hong Kong Chinese pair of Cheung Hoi Kem and Lee Ho Ching with a score of 4-1 (11-9, 12-10, 11-8, 10-12, 11-8) to advance to the final. In the final, facing the duo of Cheng I-Ching and Huang Yi-Hua from Chinese Taipei, although initially trailing by losing the first two sets, the Singapore pair staged a comeback by consecutively winning three sets and secured victory in the decisive seventh set with a score of 11-2. Ultimately, they reversed the situation with a remarkable 4-3 win (11-13, 11-13, 11-8, 11-4, 11-3, 5-11, 11-2), thereby clinching the gold medal in the women's doubles event at the 2012 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals.
2013–14 World Championships Yu partnered with Feng to compete in the 2013 ITTF World Table Tennis Championships held in Paris, France. The Singaporean duo went through the competition with impressive performances, including defeating the Japanese pair of Kasumi Ishikawa and Mima Ito with a score of 4-1 (11-7, 11-5, 11-7, 8-11, 11-7) and securing a 4-0 victory (11-7, 11-6, 11-3, 11-8) against Japan’s Ai Fukuhara and Sayaka Hirano. In the semi-final, they faced the top-ranked Chinese pair (World No.1) of Guo Yue and Li Xiaoxia, who eventually won the gold medal. Despite winning the first set, the Singaporean duo was defeated with a score of 2-4 (12-10, 7-11, 7-11, 4-11, 11-9, 8-11). Eventually, they secured the bronze medal in the women's doubles event at the 2013 World Table Tennis Championships, which marked a commendable achievement for the Singaporean pair.
Yu, together with her teammates Feng, Li, and Yee, participated in the 2014 World Table Tennis Team Championships held in Tokyo, Japan. As the second-seeded player of the Singaporean team, Yu displayed remarkable performances in the battles against opposing teams’ first-seeded players, achieving a seven-game winning streak. She defeated players such as Ni Xialian from Luxembourg, Li Jiao from the Netherlands, Suh Hyowon from South Korea, and Elizabeta Samara from Romania. This contributed to Singapore's successful journey into the semi-finals. In the semi-final, Yu’s teammate Feng faced a 1-3 defeat against China's Li Xiaoxia. Following that, Yu suffered a 0-3 loss against China's Ding Ning (World No. 1). Li faced a 0-3 defeat against China's Zhu Yuling. The Singaporean team ultimately obtained the bronze medal in the 2014 World Table Tennis Team Championships.
2014 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals and injury Before the 2014 Incheon Asian Games, Yu suffered from a lumbar disc herniation which rendered her unable to walk for over a month. As a result, Yu pulled out of the singles competition at the Asian Games. However, Yu was still entered as part of the table tennis team but failed to make any appearances during the Games.
Yu represented the Singaporean team in the 2014 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals. In the women's singles competition, she defeated German veteran Han Ying with a score of 4-2 and then secured a 4-1 victory against Japanese player Sayaka Hirano. In the semi-final, Yu faced South Korean player Suh Hyowon. Despite winning the first set, she ultimately suffered a 2-4 defeat (11-4, 5-11, 6-11, 8-11, 11-8, 9-11). She concluded the tournament with a bronze medal in the women's singles event.
In the women's doubles competition, Yu partnered with Feng. In the quarterfinals, when facing the Chinese Taipei’s pair of Cheng I-Ching and Huang Yi-Hua, they won with a score of 4-3. In the semi-final, the Singaporean duo faced the eventual gold medallists from Japan, Miu Hirano and Mima Ito. Despite winning the first set, Yu and Feng ended up with a 2-4 defeat (11-5, 8-11, 6-11, 4-11, 11-9, 8-11), obtaining a bronze medal in the women's doubles event at the 2014 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals.
2015 World Championships Yu and her partner Feng participated in the 2015 ITTF World Table Tennis Championships held in Suzhou, China. During the competition, the duo defeated the Hong Kong's pair of Jiang Huajun and Tie Ya Na with a score of 4-1, and the South Korean pair of Park Young-sook and Yang Ha-eun with a score of 4-1. In the semi-final, they faced the world's top-ranked Chinese pair Liu Shiwen and Zhu Yuling who were the eventual gold medallists. Despite winning the first set, Yu and Feng ultimately suffered a 1-4 defeat (11-9, 9-11, 6-11, 7-11, 4-11). The pair secured the bronze medal in the women's doubles event at the 2015 World Table Tennis Championships.
2016 Summer Olympics This was Yu's Olympics debut. She was seeded ninth in singles event and fourth in women's team event. Before the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, Yu had suffered from multiple injuries, battling sports-related health issues for over the years. Starting from April 2016, with the help of painkillers, steroid injections, and platelet-rich plasma therapy, Yu persevered through the 2016 Asian Cup and the Rio Olympics. In November of the same year, she underwent surgery to repair the torn labrum of her shoulder.
In the singles competition, Yu defeated the 8th seed and South Korea's top player Jeon Ji-hee with a score of 4-1, advancing to the quarterfinals but lost with 2–4 (8-11, 11-6, 5-11, 6-11, 11-9, 6-11) to Kim Song-i of North Korea, who is eventually the bronze medalist of Women's single competition.
The Singapore women's team, comprising Yu, Feng and Zhou, reached the semi-final of the team event but lost to China with 0–3. In the bronze medal match, the trio was defeated by Japan 1–3. Yu got things off to a promising start when she upset world No. 8 Ai Fukuhara 3-2 (4-11, 11-5, 11-3, 4-11, 11-5) in the first singles of the best-of-five tie, which was the sole point for the Singapore team. Following that, team captain Feng, however, was defeated 0-3 (10-12, 6-11, 7-11) in her singles tie against Kasumi Ishikawa. Yu teamed up with Zhou in the doubles match, but they were also beaten 1-3 (9-11, 11-9, 11-1, 14-12) by Fukuhara and Mima Ito. Feng in the next single match was unsuccessful against Ito, losing 0-3.
Singles event Date Round Result Opponent Score Individual Sets - 1stBye - 2ndBye 7 August 3rd Win Lay Jian Fang 4-0 11-9 11-9 11-6 12-10 - - 8 August 4thWin Jeon Ji-hee 4-112-108-1112-1011-711-2 - 9 August Quarter-FinalLoss Kim Song-i 2-4 8-11 11-6 5-11 6-11 11-9 6-11