Description

The sport got its start in England towardstheend of the 19th century when after dinner some upper middleclassVictorians decided to turn their dining room tables intominiatureversions of the traditional lawn tennis playing field.Severaldifferent every day objects were employed in constructingthe sportThey used a line of books as the net Rackets were lidsfrom emptycigar boxes and a little later parchment paper stretchedaround aframe. The ball would be either a ball of string or perhapsmorecommonly a champagne cork or rubber ball
the US table tennis team was invited on an all-expenses-paid triptoplay in China Four days later nine players four officials andtwospouses crossed the bridge from Hong Kong to the ChinesemainlandThey were the first group of Americans to be allowed intothecountry since the communist One of the first signs during theColdwar of improved relations between the United States and ChinaTimemagazine called it the pong heard throughout the world Itwasshortly followed with a visit to China by President Nixon