Fan Zhendong became the first winner of three straight World Cup titles after he was crowned at the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF)'s World Cup finals in Weihai, Shandong Province in east China, on November 15. 

The 23-year-old world No.1 overcame fellow Chinese star, Ma Long, the No.2 seed. He won four rounds in a thrilling seven-game final to clinch his third consecutive World Cup title and fourth altogether. He is the second player to win four World Cup titles in the 40-year history of the event, tying with table tennis legend Ma Lin. 

"It feels so good to win a championship. I cherish this one even more as it comes from a very tough match," Fan said.

After joining the Chinese national table tennis team in 2012 as its youngest member, Fan became the youngest ITTF World Tour Champion and the youngest World Table Tennis Champion.