picture of history of table tennis

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A Comprehensive History of Table Tennis

Like many other sports, Table Tennis began as a mild social diversion. It was
probably played with improvised equipment in England, during the last quarter
of the 19th century. Though Table Tennis evolved, along with Badminton and Lawn
Tennis, from the ancient game of Tennis (also known as Jeu de Paume, Real tennis, Court Tennis
or Royal Tennis), the game was developed after Lawn Tennis became popular in the 1880s.
Like many other sports, Table Tennis began as a mild social diversion. It was
probably played with improvised equipment in England, during the last quarter
of the 19th century. Though Table Tennis evolved, along with Badminton and Lawn
Tennis, from the ancient game of Tennis (also known as Jeu de Paume, Real tennis, Court Tennis
or Royal Tennis), the game was developed after Lawn Tennis became popular in the 1880s.


Ancient woodcut showing jeu de paume game, published in 1576
Game manufacturers tried many experiments to market an indoor version of Lawn
Tennis, including board and dice games, Tiddledy Winks variations, card games,
racket and balloon games and others. The first use of the name "Table Tennis"
appeared on a board and dice game in 1887 by J.H.Singer of New York.
This probably accounts for the mysterious entry in the George S. Parker game
catalog of the same year: "Table Tennis: This game is laid out like a Lawn Tennis
court, played and counted just the same, all the rules being observed."


The earliest evidence extant of an action game of Tennis on a table is a set
made by David Foster, patented in England in 1890: Parlour Table Games, which
included table versions of Lawn Tennis, Cricket and Football. This game featured
strung rackets, a 30mm cloth covered rubber ball, a wooden fence set up around
the perimeter of the table, and large side nets extending along both sides.

One year later famous game makers John Jaques of London released their GOSSIMA
game. This game borrowed the drum style battledores from the Shuttlecock game,
and used a 50mm webbed wrapped cork ball, with an amazing 30cm high net!

Neither of these action games were successful, due to the ineffective ball:
the rubber ball had too wild a bounce, while the cork ball had too poor a bounce.
So the concept was shelved until 1900, when the celluloid ball was introduced to
the game. Jaques revived the older Gossima game but changed the name to "Gossima
or Ping Pong". The name Ping Pong was derived from the sound of the ball bouncing
off the drum battledores, each of which had a slightly different sound. The higher
pitched sound suggested Ping, the lower pitch, Pong. This can still be demonstrated
today using the antique battledores!

The game quickly caught on with the public, marketed under many different names:
Ping Pong or Gossima
Ping Pong
Table Tennis
Whiff Waff
Parlour Tennis
Indoor Tennis
Pom-Pom
Pim-Pam
Netto
Royal Game
Tennis de Salon
and others.

Gradually the two most popular names prevailed: Ping Pong, and Table Tennis. However,
these competing names caused some problems, as two associations were formed, and with
different rules for the game some confusion resulted. Ping Pong was trademarked in 1900
by Hamley Brothers in England, and soon afterwards Hamleys became "jointly concerned"
with Jaques. They rigorusly enforced the Ping Pong trademark, requiring use of their
Ping Pong equipment in tournaments and clubs. Parker Brothers, who acquired the American
rights to the name Ping Pong, similarly enforced the trademark. Eventually it became clear
that for the sport to move forward, the commercial ties had to be severed.
Timeline of Table Tennis Milestones
with thanks to the late Ron Crayden (ENG)
and his book, The Story of Table Tennis - the first 100 years
with updates by the ITTF Museum
• 1880s Adaption of lawn tennis to the dining table with improvised equipment
• 1890s Several patents registered in England and the USA
Manufactured sets produced under trade names such as Gossima, and Indoor Tennis, with Lawn Tennis style rules
• 1900 Introduction of celluloid balls to replace rubber and cork ones. The celluloid ball had the perfect bounce, and the game became a huge success
• 1901 Table Tennis Association and rival Ping Pong Association formed in England; amalgamated in 1903
First books on the game published in England
The game is introduced in China via western settlements
• 1904 Ping Pong craze fades, some pockets of popularity in eastern Europe continue
• 1922 Revival of the game in Europe, though laws varied
Establishment of standard laws of the Game in England
• 1926 International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) initiated in Berlin
First World Championships held in London, England. ITTF Constitution adopted, along with first set of standardized Laws.
Ivor Montagu (ENG) elected first President (Chairman)
• 1920s –
 1950s Classic Hard Bat Era (European Dominance)
• 1926–
 1931 Maria Mednyanszky (HUN) wins the World Championships five times consecutively. Mednyansky wins 18 gold medals over-all
• 1930–
 1935 Victor Barna (HUN) becomes five times world champion and is runner-up 1931 losing the final against his compatriot Miklos Szabados. Barna wins a record 22 gold medals at world championships during his career, 40 medals overall
• 1936 Tenth World Championships held in Prague, Czechoslovakia. The longest rally took place, the first point taking over two hours
• 1939 First continental association formed: South America
First World Championship held outside Europe: Cairo, Egypt
• 1950–
 1955 Angelica Rozeanu-Adelstein (ROU) wins the World Championships six times in a row and is the last non Asian to win the female singles title until today
• 1950s –
 1970s Age of Sponge Bat and Technology (Beginning of Asian Dominance)
• 1952 Nineteenth World Championships held in Bombay, India The first to be staged in Asia and Japan’s entry to the international scene
Hiroji Satoh (JPN) became the first player to win a World Championship when using a racket covered with thick sponge and is the first non-European winner
Inauguration of the Asian Federation & First Asian Federation Championships
• 1953 China entered the World Championships for the first time
• 1954 Ichiro Ogimura (JPN) is the epitome of Japanese dominance with technological development and physical training
• 1956 Tomie Okada-Okawa (JPN) is the first female player from Asia to win the World Championships and stops the European reign on world’s female table tennis.
• 1957 World Championship changes to a two-year cycle
• 1958 First European Championships, Budapest, Hungary. The USSR made their entry to the international scene
• 1959 Rong Guotuan (CHN) is the first Chinese world champion in any sport
Racket standardization laws enacted
• 1962 First All-Africa Championships, Alexandria, Egypt
• 1967 Ivor Montagu retired as President of the ITTF after forty years in office
• 1971 First Commonwealth Championships held in Singapore
Ping Pong Diplomacy: table tennis played an important role in international diplomacy when several teams were invited to China for a series of friendship matches after the 1971 World Championships. Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai: “Your visit to China has opened the door for people-to-people exchanges between China and the USA.”
• 1971 Stellan Bengtsson (SWE) wins the men’s singles title and heralds the start of three decades of Swedish influence, with top players such as Kjell Johansson, Mikael Appelgren, Erik Lindh, Jan-Ove Waldner, Jörgen Persson, and Peter Karlsson.
• 1973 First World University Championships held in Hanover, Germany
• 1977 ITTF received formal declaration of its recognition by the International Olympic Committee (IOC)
• 1979 First European Championships for Paraplegics (wheelchair players) held in Stoke Mandeville, England
• 1980 First World Cup held in Hong Kong
• 1981 World Championships held in Nova Sad, Yugoslavia. Total triumph for China, whose athletes win all of the seven gold medals
Table tennis admitted to the Olympic programme (84th session IOC)
• 1982 First World Veterans’ Championships held in Gothenburg, Sweden
First World Championships for the disabled held in Stoke Mandeville, England
• 1985 European Youth Championships held in The Hague, Holland
• Modern Olympics Era (Chinese Reign with few exceptions)
• 1988 For the very first time, table tennis was featured in the Olympic Games that were held in Seoul, South Korea
• 1992 Former World champion, Jan-Ove Waldner (SWE) became Olympic singles champion and reputedly, the first table tennis millionaire
• 1995 World Championships held in Tianjin, China. Total triumph for China for the second time, winning seven gold medals
• 1996 Beginning of the ITTF Pro Tour, with events taking place all around the world
• 2000 After the Olympics in Sydney, the ball size is increased to 40mm for improved television viewing
• 2001 Game score changed from 21 to 11 points World Championships held in Osaka, Japan. Total triumph for China for the third time, winning all of the seven gold medals
• 2002 Implementation of the ITTF World Junior Circuit (U18) and World Cadet Challenge (U15 continental team competition)
• 2003 First ITTF World Junior Championships in Santiago, Chile
Team Championships separated from individual events, held in alternate years
• 2004 During the Olympic Games in Athens, Table Tennis ranked 5th among all sports for television viewing audience
• 2005 World Championships held in Shanghai, China. Total triumph again for China, winning all of the five gold medals.
• 2006 World Championships held in Bremen, Germany. The Chinese athletes complete the collection with two gold medals in the team events
• 2007 World Championships held in Zagreb, Croatia. Total triumph number five for China, winning all of the five gold medals
First appearance of table tennis as a compulsory sport at the Universiade in Bangkok, Thailand
• 2008 China sweeps the Team championships in Guangzhou
China wins all the Gold at the Beijing Olympic Games
• 2010 Table tennis is part of the first Youth Olympic Games

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The History of Table Tennis 2

Like many other sports, table tennis began as a mild social diversion. Descending, along with lawn tennis and badminton, from the ancient medieval game of tennis. It was popular in England in the second half of the nineteenth century under its present name and various trade names such as Gossima and Whiff-Whaff. After the name Ping-Pong (an imitation of the sound made by the ball striking the table and the vellum bats that were used) was introduced by J. Jaques & Son, the game became a fashionable craze. There are many contemporary references to it and illustrations of it being played, usually in domestic surroundings. By the early years of this century, Ping-Pong had already acquired some of its present day complexities, though it was still seen by many as an after -dinner amusement rather than a sport. An account published in 1903 found it necessary to warn against wearing a dress suit and stiff shirt-or, for ladies, a white satin gown-but went on to give detailed technical advice about pimpled rubber, the penholder grip and tactics.
The game was popular in Central Europe in 1905-10, and even before this is a modified version had been introduced to Japan , where it later spread to China and Korea.
After a period when it had dropped out of favor in Europe, the game was revived in England and Wales in the early twenties. by that time 'Ping-Pong' had been registered as a trademark, so the earlier name of table tennis was re-introduced. National associations were formed and standardization of the rules began, both in Europe and the Far East.
Then, over the next sixty years, table tennis developed into a major worldwide sport, played by perhaps thirty million competitive players and by uncountable millions who play less seriously. However, the game itself has not changed in essence since its earliest days, though it is faster, more subtle and more demanding than it was even only twenty years ago. a constant concern of the ITTF has always been to insure that table tennis remains a contest of human skills and that technological developments which add a new factor to the game do not give too great an advantage to the players who have the first opportunity of making use of them. Thus, equipment specifications are carefully laid down, and rigorously enforced.
Other changes-a lowering of the net, a rule to avoid protracted games between defensive players, and rules preventing excessive advantage being gained by the server-were introduced in the thirties and further minor changes are made from time to time. Changes to the rules of the sport can only be made only at the ITTF's Biennial General Meeting, and are never made without the agreement of a substantial majority of the hundred or so member Associations represented at the BGM, all of whom have an equal vote.
Modern table tennis at national and international level is a rigorous as any sport in its demands for the highest degree of physical fitness and mental concentration, attained only by arduous training to develop natural skill. Fred Perry, World Men's Singles Table Tennis Champion in 1928-29, later achieved even greater fame at Wimbledon; perhaps it would not be quite true to say that he moved to the larger court when his play became too slow for the table, but it is certainly true that no sport requires faster reactions and more delicate muscular co-ordination than table tennis.

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Table Tennis Tips and Tricks

1. Mix up serves of different length and spin. Some examples of advanced serves include medium-long, deep, short, down-the-line, pure spin, pure speed, etc. Serves to the elbow tend to be very effective, since the receiver must quickly decide (and often does not in time) to use a forehand or backhand.

2. Develop a third-ball attack. This is where you serve, the receiver receives, and you nail one in for a winner. An example is a short backspin serve, followed by a long push, then a powerful loop.
3. Attack whenever you can, primarily on a long serve. It has been proven that the player to open the offense most often usually wins point, set, and match.
4. Keep your eyes mostly on the opponent's racket when receiving a serve. If you have ever seen World Champion Jan-Ove Waldner play, you can see that he makes a quick glimpse at how high the ball is tossed, then watches back down to the racket. If you keep your eyes on the ball, the server will baffle you with his deceptions.
5. Mix up your returns when receiving. Most players too often tend to push, allowing their opponents to start the offense. Mixing up loops, drives, pushes, chops, etc. provides for excellent variation and a bewildered opponent.
6. Choose your equipment wisely. If you are ready for professional equipment, begin with a medium-fast blade (rather than fast). A medium-fast blade allows you to rely more on technique than on equipment to get the ball over the net. It will also provide optimum control. The most important consideration for a blade, however, is that it provides good "feeling." As for rubber try to get the "beginner" kinds for the beginning. The reason for this is because beginner rubbers are designed with less spin and speed, and this translates into easier returns of spinny balls. Trying to return a sidespin serve will be a hair-pulling experience for a beginner if he/she uses an overly spinny rubber.
7. Forehands are the way to go. To hit forehands wherever you are on the table, you will need to develop good side-to-side footwork. But it never hurts to work extra on your backhand so that your opponent won't know what hit him/her when you blast that down the line backhand smash! The best players are always two-winged, or being able to attack almost equally well on both hands.
8. Find some cool serves to experiment with. Examples include a high, heavy backspin serve that bounces on your side near the net, on the opponent's side near the net, and goes back over to your side. Or you can go about 20 feet to the side of the table and, standing sideways, nail the ball on the side so that it arcs back to the table and opponent. Not only is it a heck of a lot of fun, trying these serves also promotes the development of 'touch' and spin.
9. Control your temper. When you are losing in a match, or have missed several shots in a row, don't get mad, get even. Ask yourself what needs to be done in order to beat the problem that is plaguing your game. Then try the solution. If it doesn't work, do it again. Until the match is over, you should never give up. If it is your turn to serve, then you are allotted a reasonable amount of time per serve to wait and think things over before you toss the ball. Take

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The History of Table Tennis

Very little can be said about the history of table tennis. There is the creation of the game, and the development of the game, but that's all.
Table tennis was created in 1881 by bored British Officers who carved a ball from champagne cork and used cigar box covers to bat it back and forth across a barrier of books dividing a table. Of course the sport has changed drastically in the past century, and it has become much more popular. As mentioned in the "Description" section, table tennis can be played by anyone of any age, however less than 1% of these players actually play competitively. The whole concept of table tennis competition didn't even take shape until the 1930's. Before that, it was played at parties and was just "fun". In fact, during the early 1900's, the paddles were made like tennis rackets, with long handles and a pear shaped playing surface. By looking at the following pictures, it can be judged the table tennis "ping-pong" was played much by the wealthy or royalty, and by women as well.

Spear Boxed Set ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
This beautiful set is complete with wood bats, net and netposts, and
features one of the finest and most colorful lithographs of the era,
dating to 1902. Much of the early Table Tennis graphics show the players
in elegant clothing, and usually show both men and women in active play.

Tennis de Salon ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
This superb lithograph shows another charming scene from the early days
of Table Tennis, using a French name for the game. Circa 1902 - a lovely
work of art.

Sala Set ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
This very rare early set features a pair of drum-style battledores and
cloth-covered balls, with colorful lithograph in a handsome wood box.
The balls were covered with cloth so as not to scratch Mama's dining
table! The only known example of this wonderful set, circa 1901.
Complete with rare advertising postcard with the same scene.

Spalding ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
Another lovely boxed set from the earliest days of Table Tennis, this
one again features a fine color lithograph, as well as an unusual and
very rare pair of elegant cane rackets, with a single sheet of sheepskin
vellum embedded in the racket head.

Milton Bradley ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
This beautiful boxed set by Milton Bradley shows an experimental name
for the new game: The Royal Game of Table Tennis. Complete with pair of
parchment battledores, net and netposts, circa 1901.

Horsman ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
Another fine early boxed set, complete with rackets, net and netposts,
with colorful parlor scene lithograph on the boxlid. Made by Horsman,
circa 1902.

After looking at all these old sets, look at the type of paddle that table tennis players use today:
Think of how this design evolved through the past century. Amazing, isn't it?

This picture was taken in early 1998. Notice how the players look very athletic, and they are wearing "active wear". Compare this to the pictures of the people playing with the old equipment.
For a reason unknown, the Chinese took table tennis as their national sport. The Asians started by using the "penhold grip", unlike Americans, who use the shakehand grip. However, more Chinese are learning the western style of table tennis play and are changing to the shakehand grip.
In China, If you asked someone to play table tennis, they'd probably ask you how how well you played. China has an estimated 4 million (4,000,000) tournament players, comparable to the United States' 4 thousand (4,000)
The evolution of table tennis took a long time, as anyone can tell.

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