The History of Table Tennis
Very little can be said about the history of table tennis. There is the creation of the game, and the development of the game, but that's all.
Table tennis was created in 1881 by bored British Officers who carved a ball from champagne cork and used cigar box covers to bat it back and forth across a barrier of books dividing a table. Of course the sport has changed drastically in the past century, and it has become much more popular. As mentioned in the "Description" section, table tennis can be played by anyone of any age, however less than 1% of these players actually play competitively. The whole concept of table tennis competition didn't even take shape until the 1930's. Before that, it was played at parties and was just "fun". In fact, during the early 1900's, the paddles were made like tennis rackets, with long handles and a pear shaped playing surface (see pictures below). By looking at the following pictures, it can be judged the table tennis "ping-pong" was played much by the wealthy or royalty, and by women as well.
Spear Boxed Set ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
This beautiful set is complete with wood bats, net and netposts, and
features one of the finest and most colorful lithographs of the era,
dating to 1902. Much of the early Table Tennis graphics show the players
in elegant clothing, and usually show both men and women in active play.
Tennis de Salon ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
This superb lithograph shows another charming scene from the early days
of Table Tennis, using a French name for the game. Circa 1902 - a lovely
work of art.
Sala Set ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
This very rare early set features a pair of drum-style battledores and
cloth-covered balls, with colorful lithograph in a handsome wood box.
The balls were covered with cloth so as not to scratch Mama's dining
table! The only known example of this wonderful set, circa 1901.
Complete with rare advertising postcard with the same scene.
Spalding ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
Another lovely boxed set from the earliest days of Table Tennis, this
one again features a fine color lithograph, as well as an unusual and
very rare pair of elegant cane rackets, with a single sheet of sheepskin
vellum embedded in the racket head.
Milton Bradley ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
This beautiful boxed set by Milton Bradley shows an experimental name
for the new game: The Royal Game of Table Tennis. Complete with pair of
parchment battledores, net and netposts, circa 1901.
Horsman ©Copyright Racket Sports Heritage
Another fine early boxed set, complete with rackets, net and netposts,
with colorful parlor scene lithograph on the boxlid. Made by Horsman,
circa 1902.
After looking at all these old sets, look at the type of
paddle that table tennis players use today:
Think of how this design evolved through the past century. Amazing, isn't it?
This picture was taken in early 1998. Notice how the players look very athletic, and they are wearing "active wear". Compare this to the pictures of the people playing with the old equipment.
For a reason unknown, the Chinese took table tennis as their national sport. The Asians started by using the "penhold grip", unlike Americans, who use the shakehand grip (See Basic Skills). However, more Chinese are learning the western style of table tennis play and are changing to the shakehand grip.
In China, If you asked someone to play table tennis, they'd probably ask you how how well you played. China has an estimated 4 million (4,000,000) tournament players, comparable to the United States' 4 thousand (4,000)
The evolution of table tennis took a long time, as anyone can tell.