The History

Table tennis is one of the most popular sport on Earth, it takes part to Olympic Games since seul 1988 and can be played for fun as well as professional sport activity.
 It’s also possible to call it “ping-pong” and with this term is also well known all over the world. It’s possible to play table tennis for fun everywhere: park and open places, open swimming pools, at home or everywhere it’s possible to put a official table for competition or at least use another one with a proper table tennis net.

Table tennis in term as a sport can be played only indoor, playing area is pretty wide and defined following specific lenghts, light on the table should be uniform and tables and rackets should be approved by ITTF (International Table Tennis Federation)

. Table tennis is born as a sport at the one of nineteenth century in England coming from normal tennis.
 Firstly it was only dedicated to upper class to play then after some years, with introduction of cellulid balls and restyling of table tennis blades diffusion of sport grew greatly also among lower classes.

First International Federation has been created in 1926 and at the same time took part the first World Champions that were played every 2 years until 2000.

After 2001 every year a World Team event takes place, normally during May: during pair years there’s Team Competition while on unpair years there’s Team Single’s, Double’s and Team competition events.

Europe becomes from the beginning world leader of ping pong until ’50:
after that Japanese players started to play with new rubbers (sandwich rubber) with sponge able to give new and incredible effects to the game: this made that way of playing much closer to modern table tennis and after Japan it was China to join table tennis and to elect it as a national sport thanks to Mao Tse Tung at the end of ’50.


 Between 1970 and 2000 there’s a sort of equilibrium between Europe and Asia but with during new millenium Chinese school reach the first place and becomes stronger and stronger not only compared to Europe but also considering Corea and Japan.

Also after 2000 there’s a huge progress in the other continents among nations that before were competitive only with few players or where even table tennis was not developed as a professional sport.