Table tennis prodigy attacks umpire

A young table tennis prodigy has viciously attacked an umpire after losing a match in a Ukrainian tournament.

In one of the worst cases of bad sportsmanship, Dmitry Melnichenko violently took out his frustrations on the umpire after losing his match to rival Vladilav Starodumov 3-0 in the cadet’s singles at the Kalashnikov Tournament.

In the footage, Melnichenko, in the dark blue top with light blue sleeves, fails to keep the game alive after missing a defensive lob from Starodumov.

Immediately after the point, Melnichenko and Starodumov meet to shake hands before Melnichenko suddenly, and aggressively, pushes the umpire out of his chair, just as Starodumov goes to shake the official’s hand.

The umpire, who looks to be the same age as Melnichenko, gets back to his feet and sternly walks after his assailant before flinging Melnichenko’s paddle across the room in retaliation.

The umpire then returns to shake hands with Starodumov before Melnichenko walks back past the official and to his waiting entourage.