(Newswire.net — May 31, 2020) —
Certain sports are better played than watched- and ping pong is one of those games. Over the last few decades, the sport of ping pong has grown considerably to become one of the most popular sports in the world.
Ping pong, which is also referred to as table tennis in many parts of the world is played by millions of people worldwide making it one of the most popularly played sport by amateurs. Ping pong has been an Olympic sport since it was sanctioned for the games in 1988.
It is easy to see why the world is addicted to ping pong. For instance, as far as Olympics sports go, it is a relatively easy game to understand and learn especially for novice players. It also has a relatively low rate of injury.
And despite being one of those games that are typically relegated to the basement, it is today characterized as a brain sport that consists of a mix of aerobic movements, a test of wills, quickness, as well as coordination.
Its small play area lends the game non-stop accelerated action, encouraging players to think outside the box as they think and move at a dizzying pace. But how exactly did this amazing sport come to be? Here is how ping pong became a competitive sport:
The history of ping pong
Ping pong is played for the first time
Ping pong’s history may not be as long and illustrious as other sports but its origins can be traced back to the 19th century. Ping pong started as a simple parlor game that encouraged anyone and everyone to take part- as long as they came with their own paddles and balls.
The game though was initially associated with wealthy elites in England. These upper-class Victorians created ping pong as an alternative to lawn tennis. Back then, they would use the most basic equipment to set up their ping pong stations.
For instance, there were no high-quality ping pong tables, books would often be used as the net, champagne or wine corks would serve as the ball while a cigar box lid would often be utilized as a racket. Even then, ping pong was an immediate hit and before very long, commercial spin-offs of the game were already being created by the 1890s.
Celluloid balls are introduced
These commercial spin-offs performed poorly at first because the ping pong balls being sold were either made using rubber (which caused the ball to bounce too wildly) or cork (which didn’t allow the balls to bounce enough). It wasn’t until celluloid balls were introduced in 1900 that ping pong finally got the bounce it needed to become popular.
As well as changing the game for the better, the celluloid balls also helped to give the game a new name- ping pong. The name was allegedly coined by an English songwriter known as Harry Dacre. He used the name to describe the sounds created by the celluloid balls as it bounces off the paddle.
Aside from the name ping pong, early versions of the game also went by other names that include flim-flam, pim-pam, whiff-waff, and parlor tennis. However, nothing proved more popular than the term ping pong.
When an English sports business known as John Jaques & Son became the market leader for ping pong equipment, they would press players to use their trademarked ping pong name from the beginning. This strategy worked in the favor. I
The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) is formed
In fact, it worked so well that the Ping Pong Association was created in December 1901, just 4 days shy of the formation of the Table Tennis Association. Across the pond in America, another American sports company known as Parker Brothers was leveraging the popularity of the sports.
They too started manufacturing their own ping pong equipment and they acquired the naming rights for the game. Parker Brothers would threaten legal action against anyone that used their proprietary trademarked name of ping pong without stipulating the use of their products.
In the naming rights scuffle, an alternative name had to be created that would allow tournaments and clubs to play without risking legal action. The new name given to the game was table tennis. It was during this period that the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) of 1926 was formed and thus, the birth of the modern table tennis game that we love and enjoy today.
It was during this very first ITTF meeting that the constitution and the rules of the game were established. The rules of the international competition were modeled after the original English rules of the game for singles and the Hungarian rules at the time for doubles. Later that year, the first tournament was held in London from 6th to 11th December 1926.
The term ping pong is still used invariably in different parts of the world, especially in the US as a result of being promoted extensively by the Parker Brothers during the early days of the game in the 1900s. Today, the term ping pong is still a federally registered trademark in the US that is now owned by Escalade Sports.
Satoh debuts his special bat
Over the next decades, ping pong’s popularity continued to grow but it remained a largely western sport until 1952 when an unknown young Japanese ping pong player by the name of Hiroji Satoh entered the World Championships with a bat that had never been seen before.
Satoh’s bat was covered in rubber foam sponge in the place of the traditional pimpled rubber. This new rubber foam allowed the balls to move faster. Though the change was simple, it spearheaded further development of ping pong technology and gadgets, further springing the sport into popularity across Asia.
Final Thoughts
Ping pong has become so popular over the past couple of years that hip and edgy ping pong hangouts, clubs, and restaurants have mushroomed all over the globe. And it is easy to see why.
Ping pong enjoys a mojo that is incredibly hard for other sports to replicate. It also has a long and illustrious history. So you can see why it has grown by leaps and bounds to become one of the most well-liked sports in the world.