(by Steve Hopkins) Butterfly-sponsored Kanak Jha is heading to Tokyo as the highest ranked of all the US table tennis players.  At the last Olympics, he was the youngest of all of the US participants.  This year, he enters as a seasoned international player who has been focused almost exclusively on table tennis, who has […]

In this video, Timo Boll provides seven tips for improving by avoiding mistakes. Tip 1: Keep the racket above the table Tip 2: Push your knees outward Tip 3: Bend your wrist Tip 4: Focus Tip 5: Play safer Tip 6: Vary your serves Tip 7: Come back to the table Watch below to see […]

(by Steve Hopkins) Fullerton Table Tennis Academy  is located off Imperial Highway in Fullerton, California.  The facility is near Bonita Pl and S Harbor Blvd/E Imperial Hwy in the neighborhoods of La Habra.  This positions the club just North of Anaheim with easy access to all of the greater Los Angeles area. The Academy focuses on the […]

(by Steve Hopkins) In an announcement that was not a surprise, Japan has officially announced they will bar spectators from the Tokyo Olympic events.  The announcement was made yesterday by the Tokyo Olympic Organizing Committee, and it follows the country’s declaration of a State of Emergency due to COVID infection rates.  A few months ago, […]

(by Steve Hopkins) In a video posted in June (on a channel hosted by TT Smash City), Dimitrij Ovtcharov demonstrated his gluing technique. Watch the video below as he outlines how many layers of glue he uses and how he attaches the rubber to the blade.  Included are a few pro tips: (1) pull the […]

(by Steve Hopkins) MK Georgia Table Tennis is in Duluth, Georgia just off of I-85 to the Northeast of Atlanta.  Duluth is in the greater Atlanta metropolitan area, and is a suburb with a strong Asian influence which includes about 10% of the population being of Korean descent.  The club itself is located off Peachtree Industrial […]

(by Steve Hopkins, photo by ITTFWorld) Chen Meng is currently at the top of the ITTF rankings, and it isn’t close.  China’s top player has 11850 points and the next closest player, Japan’s Mima Ito, is nearly 1400 points behind.  Chen will be the top seed at the Olympics and she’ll be a solid favorite.  […]

(by Steve Hopkins) The ITTF Rankings take on more meaning as we are now 23 away from Preliminary Singles rounds at the Olympics (and one month away from the first Team matches). In the most recent ITTF Weekly Rankings there was some shuffling near the bottom of the Top 10.  Dimitrij Ovtcharov and Timo Boll […]

by Steve Hopkins) Despite a draw that required Timo Boll to tackle German teammate Benedikt Duda early (winning 4-3 in the Round of 16), and Dusseldorf teammate Anton Kallberg in the quarterfinals, and top seed Mattias Falck in the semifinals, it was Boll that cruised most of the way.  When Boll faced Dimitrij Ovtcharov in […]

(by Steve Hopkins) Central Ohio is home to Spin & Smash.  Its a table tennis club that is part ping pong social club and part table tennis training center. The club is located on the West side of Columbus just off of I-270, the Jack Nicklaus Freeway.  The club features eleven Butterfly tables and there are […]