(by Steve Hopkins, photo WTT) Action kicked off on Sunday with half of the main draw seeing action at the China Smash, where Smash events are the top category of WTT tour events.  On the Men’s side, all of the Top 50 players are present except for No. 39 Yuta Tanaka.  With so many of […]

(by Steve Hopkins, photo WTT) Eight players fought through the Qualifiers to reach the main draw at the China Smash, the premiere WTT event being played this week in Beijing.  Poland’s Samuel Kulczycki emerged from one group of eight, winning three matches including a 3-1 win over USA’s Ma Jingbao.  The other qualifiers are Kazakhstan’s […]

(by Steve Hopkins) Fremont Table Tennis Academy (FTTA) has locations in both Fremont and San Ramon. Regular tournaments, open play, and coaching options are all features of FTTA.  The club locations provide plenty of hours (morning, afternoon, and evening).  They have facilities open 6 days each week. Group and private table-tennis lessons are available for […]

(By Steve Hopkins, photo MLTT) The second weekend of Major League Table Tennis featured six matches at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The first two matches were played on Friday – the New York Slice and the Florida Crocs kicked off at 4pm.  The Slice won a tight 13-8 match that needed a […]

(By Steve Hopkins, photo MLTT) USA’s Daniel Tran took top honors in the U19 Boys Singles event at the WTT Youth Contender Series event in San Francisco.  Tran entered as the fourth seed, but eliminated the top seeded Lin Chin-Ting of Taipei before taking out Australia’s Chulong Nie 3-1 in the Final.  Two other Americans won […]

(by Steve Hopkins, photo WTT) China’s top two paddlers swapped spots in the latest World Rankings, with Wang Chuqin claiming No. 1 ahead of Lin Shidong. Shidong could reclaim the top position as soon as October 7, as both players will compete at the China Smash and with only 50 points separating them, the player […]

(by Steve Hopkins) When the Sugarhill Gang released “Rapper’s Delight”, few could have imagined either the immediate or long-term effect.  The song introduced rap to millions and changed the path of hip hop.  It took an urban sound, spun it into a cultural movement.  It popularized a different type of rhythm and rhyme.  In short, […]

(By Steve Hopkins) The Folsom Table Tennis Club has two locations nestled in the greater Sacramento region of Northern California.   The two locations each provide distinct offerings to players of all levels.  Whether you are trying to push yourself through competition or just looking to sharpen your skills, this club has options for everyone. Folsom […]

(By Steve Hopkins, photo WTT) The surprises ended on the final day, as the higher seed won each of the final three matches at the WTT Champions Series event in Macao.  The pattern repeated itself in all three Men’s Singles matches Sunday with high seeded Hugo Calderano dispensing with surprise Semifinalist Anders Lind 4-0, the top […]

(by Steve Hopkins, photo USATT) The ITTF Pan American U11 & U13 Championships concluded last week in Antigua Guatemala, Guatemala.  Americans swept the singles events with strong performances across the board in the featured events. The Boys’ U13 Singles event saw all four American entries reach the Semifinals.  Chirag Pradhan defeated Andrew Huang in one […]