Gossima. Whiff-Whaff. Flim-Flam. Ping-Pong.

Whatever name it assumes, table tennis has come a long way since its introduction as a genteel, after-dinner alternative to lawn tennis in 1890s England. Today, players compete for big money, wield high-tech rackets and volley the ball at speeds up to 160 kilometres per hour. Table tennis has become the world's largest participation sport, with 40 million competitive players worldwide and countless millions playing recreationally.

The game, which debuted in the Olympic Games in 1988 at Seoul, began with cigar-box lids for rackets and a carved champagne cork for a ball. Today, players use specially developed rubber-coated wooden and carbon-fibre rackets and a lightweight, hollow celluloid ball. Various rubber compounds and glues are applied on the rackets to impart greater spin or speed.

Indeed, some glues are banned from Olympic competition - they make the ball travel up to 30km/h faster.

Discipline's origin

Table tennis developed in the late 19th century, although its origins are not well documented. It is usually considered to be of English origin, and is described as a "miniature" tennis that was played indoors in the 1880s and 1890s. The rules of the game were codified in 1922 by a Cambridge University student, Ivor Montagu (1904-1984).

In January 1926, five nations - Austria, England, Germany, Hungary, and Sweden - met to form the International Table Tennis Federation. The World Championships began in the same year.


Olympic history

The sport is widely practised throughout the world. Table tennis made its Olympic debut as a full medal sport during the Olympic Games in Seoul. It was never contested at the Olympics as a demonstration sport. Since the late 1950s, the Chinese have been by far the dominant country in table tennis.

There are four table tennis events on the Olympics programme: singles and doubles for men and women. The mixed doubles event is not held at the Olympics, but it has been an event at the World Championships since 1926.


Rules

A game shall be won by the player or pair first scoring 11 points unless both players or pairs score 10 points, when the game shall be won by the first player or pair subsequently gaining a lead of 2 points.

Advice

In a team event, players may receive advice from anyone. In an individual event, a player or pair may receive advice only from one person, designated beforehand to the umpire, except that where the players of a doubles pair are from different Associations each may designate an adviser, but with regard to 3.5.1 and 3.5.2 these two advisors shall be treated as a unit; if an unauthorised person gives advice the umpire shall hold up a red card and send him away from the playing area.

Players may receive advice only during the intervals between games or during other authorised suspension of play, and not between the end of practice and the start of a match; if any authorised person gives advice at other times the umpire shall hold up a yellow card to warn him that any further such offence will result in his dismissal from the playing area.

Misbehaviour

Players and coaches or other advisers shall refrain from behaviour that may unfairly affect an opponent, offend spectators or bring the sport into disrepute, such as abusive language, deliberately breaking the ball or hitting it out of the playing area, kicking the table or surrounds and disrespect of match officials.

If at any time a player, a coach or another adviser commits a serious offence the umpire shall suspend play and report immediately to the referee; for less serious offences the umpire may, on the first occasion, hold up a yellow card and warn the offender that any further offence is liable to incur penalties.

Except as provided in 3.5.2.2 and 3.5.2.5, if a player who has been warned commits a second offence in the same individual match or team match, the umpire shall award 1 point to the offender's opponent and for a further offence he shall award 2 points, each time holding up a yellow and a red card together.

Good Presentation

Players, coaches and officials shall uphold the object of good presentation of the sport; in particular players have to do their utmost to win a match and shall not withdraw except for reasons of illness or injury.

Any player who deliberately fails to comply with these principles shall be disciplined by total or partial loss of prize money in prize events and/or by suspension from ITTF events.

In the event of complicity pr