15 Interesting Facts About Table Tennis

After knowing about the game of Table Tennis and its equipment, now it’s time to know about some of the interesting facts about table tennis, so here we go…

Interesting Facts About Table Tennis

1. Table Tennis was banned in the Soviet Union from the year 1930 to the year 1950. The reason given by the Soviet authorities was that the game of Table Tennis is harmful to the eyes!
2. Table Tennis was first included in the Olympics in the year 1998 during Seoul Olympics.
3. In the earlier years of table tennis, the paddles, or rackets were made of cardboard, cork, or wood which were covered by a cloth, sandpaper or leather.
4. Among the sports in which a racquet is used, table tennis stands the second position all over the world, in terms of popularity.
5. Approximately 10 million players play in various official tournaments played each year.
6. After the rules were changed in the year 2000, soon after the Sydney Olympics, it has been observed that a normal table tennis game lasts for approximately 30 minutes on average.
   Read: About Table Tennis
7. Top table tennis players of the world often smash the ball at a speed that exceeds the speed of more than 100 mph.
8. In a game played in the year 1993, Jackie Bellinger and Lisa Lomas hit the table tennis ball back and forth 173 times in one minute, which is a world record.
9. For the last many years, China, Sweden, and South Korea have established them as powerhouses of table tennis.
10. Over 140 countries are affiliated with ITTF (International Table Tennis Federation).
11. There are a total of 350 ITTF ranked table tennis tournaments held across the globe in a year.
12. The other name of table tennis, ‘ping-pong’ was originally patented by the Parker Brothers but now it is owned by Escalade Sports.
13. Till the changes happened in 2000, the game of table tennis was played for 21 points, now it is reduced to 11 points.
14. During 1971 when the USA had no diplomatic relations with China, the US Table Tennis delegation visited China, which was termed as the ‘Ping Pong Diplomacy’ by the US newspapers and media in general.
15. Foam rubber rackets were introduced by Japan in the year 1952.