Table Tennis is one of the most fast paced sports that I can remember. It doesn’t get as much excitement or hype in the media as other sports such as Soccer and Football and Hockey. Yet, it is a really fun sport to play if you know what the heck you are doing.

The game is played on a regulation 9 feet lengthwise and 5 feet widthwise table. The object of the game is to make the ball get past your opponent or to bounce twice before the receiver can return it back. Your main goal is to hit it after the first bounce into a position that either is too fast to return or into an awkward angle in which the player has to reach over for it.

The game starts off by rallying for serve, 1....2....3 and the winner of the rally picks side or serve. Each side serves 5 times in a row regardless of the winner of each point. You must serve the ball neatly into the box depending on the service turn. The ball must be bounced on your side first (only on serves) and onto the opponents side without hitting the net. Hitting the net calls for a reserve. If you clip the edge of the table, the ball is out of bounds and you lose the point since those points are impossible to return.

The game goes up to 21 and you must win by at least 2 points. Games are usually best of 5. Xiu Huang Liu was a famous ping ponger back in the 1970’s who had one of the fastest reflexes known to man for the game of tennis. He competed in the Olympics, although he never won any medals. I remember a rally where he made his opponent stand about 15 metres away. It was both entertaining for themselves, the audience fans, and the viewing media.

It is an extremely fast paced game that is dominated by the Chinese. Although the singles mens winner is not always Chinese .... sometimes Bulgarian, German, Brazilian!

I love the sport because it tests how fast your brain can react to a ball travelling at bout 100 miles per hour. To be able to soften up a ball in order to hit it about 5 feet away from you onto a table. The hand eye coordination component of someone will definitely improve if they play this game. Anyone who pulls a knife out on you, will be immediately stopped by your quick actions!

Who is your favorite sports player in this field?

Xiu Huang Liu