when was ping pong invented
Late 19th Century
Table tennis was invented in England in the late 19th century. Originally an indoor game derived from tennis, in 1890 several British naval officers stationed in India played the game on a small table, later replacing the less resilient solid ball with a small hollow ball and replacing the tennis racket with a wooden board to play the novel game of “tennis” on the table.
Background and early development of table tennis
The origin of table tennis can be traced back to the late 19th century in England. In 1890, British athlete James Gibb brought back from the United States some celluloid hollow toy balls, which had a strong bounce, and after a little improvement, they were gradually popularized in Britain and other parts of the world.
Origin of the name table tennis
Table tennis has been around since the 1900's and was named after the “ping pong” sound it makes when struck. Originally, the game was known as “Table tennis”, but later the name came into being due to the “ping pong” sound made when playing the game. Table tennis was introduced to Japan between 1900 and 1902, and then to Shanghai, China in 1904.
Changes in Rules and Technical Development of Table Tennis
The technical development of table tennis is closely related to the rule changes. As the rules of table tennis continued to be improved, players continued to innovate their playing styles and techniques, resulting in distinctive styles of play. For example, in 1926, the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) was established and decided to hold the first World Table Tennis Championships, marking the official introduction of table tennis to the world. In addition, in 2000, the ITTF decided to change the diameter of the competition ball from 38mm to 40mm, which is conducive to enhancing the power advantage of the curved loop style of play.
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