The Difference Between Ping Pong and Table Tennis

Whether you play at your local recreation center or the office break room, ping pong is likely part of your everyday life. Its the sport that inspired a hit video game, was featured in the movie Forrest Gump and has even made its way to the big screen in a scene from Weird Al Yankovics music video White & Nerdy.

In fact, ping pong has become so popular that it was recently revived as a regulated Olympic sport. However, many people are confused about what the difference is between Ping Pong and Table Tennis. Essentially, both terms are used to describe the same sport, but the term Ping Pong is often associated with a more casual, garage-style playing style, while the governing body of Table Tennis (the ITTF) prefers to use the name Table Tennis in order to maintain its trademark and to keep the focus on competitive and Olympic level playing.

When celluloid balls entered the budding world of ping pong in 1900, they made an immediate impact because of their perfect bounce and consistent size. The resulting sound gave the game its first nicknames including whiff-whaff, clip-clop and ping-pong.

The ITTF was founded in 1926 with the goal of regulating the sport of ping pong and creating international competitions. Today, ping pong is played by millions of people around the world and has become one of the most popular sports on the planet. Its also a great workout and social activity, with players of all abilities having different styles of play. Control players like to keep the ball in their hand and will rarely smash the ball over the net, while defensive players like to push and chop the ball away from their opponents.