Table Tennis Facts | Facts about Table Tennis

How did table tennis begin?

Table tennis began in Victorian England as an after-dinner game played with books as nets and champagne corks as balls.

"Ping-Pong" was originally a trademark owned by J. Jaques & Son in Britain and Parker Brothers in the US.

In 1971, the US table tennis team visited China in an event called "ping-pong diplomacy," which helped thaw relations between the two countries.

Table tennis became an Olympic sport at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

Table tennis balls grew from 38mm to 40mm in 2000 to slow the game down and make it easier to watch on TV.

China has won the large majority of Olympic table tennis gold medals.

Japan's Hiroji Satoh won the 1952 world championship with a sponge-covered paddle, which changed the game.

Table tennis switched from celluloid balls to plastic balls in 2014, partly because celluloid is flammable.

Table tennis games changed from 21 points to 11 points in 2001.

In table tennis, the server must toss the ball at least 16 centimeters into the air.