Welcome to compass, Elina!
The next player to be supported by compass is Elina Hu, who hails from Basel in Switzerland.
Elina turned ten on 29 January and has already reached the top four in U13 events at international WTT tournaments.
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Elina Hu, from now on supported by compass. Photo: Private
Elina Hu comes from a family with a background in table tennis. Her father, Jiashun Hu, played in the Asia Cup for China in his youth and was one of the top young players of his generation, alongside three-time Olympic finalist Wang Hao. At the age of 19, Jiashun was asked to help a team in Switzerland with two matches, which he did. They then asked him to stay longer, which he did, and he and his family settled down in the country.
Older sister led the way
Elina has an older sister called Enya who is one of the best players in Europe for her age group.
“So, whenever I practised with Enya, I brought Elina with me. She started to play table tennis herself when she was three years old. When she was four, Elina started practising regularly, for about 90 minutes, four or five times a week.” commented Jiashun Hu.
“She was very keen to follow in her older sister’s footsteps. She watched all of Enya’s matches with great interest and developed a tactical sense for the game early on. She understood why her sister won or lost and had her own ideas on the matter. I believe this is a gift that is difficult to train, and now, as Elina grows, I would say she is a very clever player who doesn’t rely on power, but uses a lot of variations to win rallies.”
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Elina in action at WTT Youth Contender in Linz, January 2026. Photo: WTT
The key to strong development
The Hu family belongs to a local club in Basel, close to where they live. They have a key to the hall, so they can practise there whenever they want – normally every day. Jiashun previously worked in Zurich in accounting, but the travel time was excessive, so he has returned to work in Basel to be closer to home and be able to train Enya, Elina and their little sister.
“We have a better balance now.”
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Award ceremony in Linz, with U13 winner Adela Brhelova. Photo: WTT
Already compete against players two years older
Elina started playing internationally at the age of nine. She has played in three international competitions so far, winning the U11 category in two of them. In Sarajevo, she also reached the semifinals in the U13 category, and in Linz in January 2026, she came second in the U13 category after another compass-supported player, Adela Brhelova.
Who is Elina’s role model?
“Her role models are the German player Koharu Itagaki, who won the World Under-15 Championship, and Mima Ito of Japan. They both play pimples out on the backhand side, like Elina does. Elina actually uses the same Nittaku rubbers as Mima Ito, whose style was also the reason Elina started using pimples on her backhand side in the first place.” says her father and coach Jiashun.
“We are very pleased to have this opportunity to cooperate with compass, a foundation we have admired for several years for its professionalism.”
The happiness is mutual:
“We are very pleased to welcome Elina among the compass-supported players,” comments compass Managing Director Daniel Zwickl. “We have been following her development in recent years. We believe she has great potential and that she already belongs to the best players of her generation. We value and appreciate the ecosystem around her, led by her father, Jiashun, and we look forward to supporting her in the best possible way according to her needs.”
Welcome to compass, Elina!
More information and all results can be found at:
Welcome to compass, Elina!
Welcome to compass, Elina!
The next player to be supported by compass is Elina Hu, who hails from Basel in Switzerland.
Elina turned ten on 29 January and has already reached the top four in U13 events at international WTT tournaments.
none
Elina Hu, from now on supported by compass. Photo: Private
Elina Hu comes from a family with a background in table tennis. Her father, Jiashun Hu, played in the Asia Cup for China in his youth and was one of the top young players of his generation, alongside three-time Olympic finalist Wang Hao. At the age of 19, Jiashun was asked to help a team in Switzerland with two matches, which he did. They then asked him to stay longer, which he did, and he and his family settled down in the country.
Older sister led the way
Elina has an older sister called Enya who is one of the best players in Europe for her age group.
“So, whenever I practised with Enya, I brought Elina with me. She started to play table tennis herself when she was three years old. When she was four, Elina started practising regularly, for about 90 minutes, four or five times a week.” commented Jiashun Hu.
“She was very keen to follow in her older sister’s footsteps. She watched all of Enya’s matches with great interest and developed a tactical sense for the game early on. She understood why her sister won or lost and had her own ideas on the matter. I believe this is a gift that is difficult to train, and now, as Elina grows, I would say she is a very clever player who doesn’t rely on power, but uses a lot of variations to win rallies.”
none
Elina in action at WTT Youth Contender in Linz, January 2026. Photo: WTT
The key to strong development
The Hu family belongs to a local club in Basel, close to where they live. They have a key to the hall, so they can practise there whenever they want – normally every day. Jiashun previously worked in Zurich in accounting, but the travel time was excessive, so he has returned to work in Basel to be closer to home and be able to train Enya, Elina and their little sister.
“We have a better balance now.”
none
Award ceremony in Linz, with U13 winner Adela Brhelova. Photo: WTT
Already compete against players two years older
Elina started playing internationally at the age of nine. She has played in three international competitions so far, winning the U11 category in two of them. In Sarajevo, she also reached the semifinals in the U13 category, and in Linz in January 2026, she came second in the U13 category after another compass-supported player, Adela Brhelova.
Who is Elina’s role model?
“Her role models are the German player Koharu Itagaki, who won the World Under-15 Championship, and Mima Ito of Japan. They both play pimples out on the backhand side, like Elina does. Elina actually uses the same Nittaku rubbers as Mima Ito, whose style was also the reason Elina started using pimples on her backhand side in the first place.” says her father and coach Jiashun.
“We are very pleased to have this opportunity to cooperate with compass, a foundation we have admired for several years for its professionalism.”
The happiness is mutual:
“We are very pleased to welcome Elina among the compass-supported players,” comments compass Managing Director Daniel Zwickl. “We have been following her development in recent years. We believe she has great potential and that she already belongs to the best players of her generation. We value and appreciate the ecosystem around her, led by her father, Jiashun, and we look forward to supporting her in the best possible way according to her needs.”
Welcome to compass, Elina!
More information and all results can be found at:
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