RESTART in TT-Minus 6 days: Cheng I-Ching

November 2, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) Its almost time for the three ITTF events that are collectively being called the ITTF RESTART events. The ITTF has selected 21 male and 21 female athletes to come to China to participate in the Women’s World Cup, the Men’s World Cup, and the 2020 ITTF Finals. The first of these events will […]

WAB Club: Austin Table Tennis Club

November 1, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) The Austin Table Tennis Club is located at 8956 Research Blvd in Austin. They are just off of US Highway 183 on the North side of Austin. The club has been around for more than thirty years. They first started in the back of a bar, with a wooden dance floor serving a […]

Rhode Island’s Rich Table Tennis History

October 31, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) One of the neatest things about living in Rhode Island is the rich table tennis history in the region. Despite being the smallest U.S. State, Rhode Island is prominently represented in Tim Boggan’s History of Table Tennis. The club was a regular stop for regional players and pros for a generation with appearances from […]

PINGPOD DIVISIONAL LEAGUE – SEASON TWO

October 27, 2020

Dear Table Tennis Lover, Find below a few new announcements! JOIN PINGPOD LEAGUE SEASON TWO – “DIVISIONS” Season Two will be played in 4 divisions based on skill level. Details can be found here. As always, there will be prizes for the top finishers per division. The top 2 finishers in each division will […]

USATT’S THURSDAY NIGHT LIVE: Ted Li’s Upset Win

October 24, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) USA Table Tennis continued its T2 Challenge Series this week with an Encore Edition of Thursday Night Live. The team format from previous versions has ended (Team Butterfly overcame Team Nittaku 6-3 in that Series), but USATT continues to bring us quality table tennis. This week, the event matches two young, up […]

Sally Moyland – Taiwan Cadet Trip Report

October 21, 2020

(By Sally Moyland) The Taiwan cadet national team qualification tournament has been my next goal since I made the mini-cadet team back in 2019. The tournament was located in Tainan in the south of Taiwan and lasted for four days. My mom drove us down south for three and a half hours to get there. […]

AIBISS review by Sponsored Coaches and Olympian Tawny Banh

October 12, 2020

(By USA Table Tennis Hall of Fame – Tawny Banh) Butterfly released Aibiss in June of 2020. It is a very tacky, high-friction rubber with a specialized top sheet with a pimple shape that enables heavy spin as well as a curved arc over the net. It has the hardest sponge ever of all Butterfly […]

USATT Announcement: New Membership Options

October 12, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) USA Table Tennis released a new, simplified membership structure for 2021. Players will now be able to choose a “BASIC” or “PRO” plan option. The BASIC Plan option will only cost $25 per year. It allows players to compete in 4 Star events (and below), and USATT Leagues only. The PRO Plan […]

Adriana Diaz, Puerto Rico’s “Athlete of the Decade”

October 6, 2020

(Courtesy of ITTF / by Kabir Nagpal) Winner of the women’s title at the Pan America Cup earlier this year, thus on route to next month’s Women’s World Cup, 19-year-old Adriana Diaz has been voted Puerto Rico’s “Marcó La Década”, the athlete of the decade. She appears proudly on the front cover of the Caribbean […]

What’s New?: A larger handle and Kevlar carbon – The Omar Assar Blade

September 29, 2020

Assar uses a customized Butterfly inner fiber carbon blade that bears his name (OMAR ASSAR BLADE), and Tenergy 05 Hard. Omar Assar is an exciting player from Egypt. The Olympian currently plays for Borussia Dusseldorf and was one of the most successful players in the recent Dusseldorf Masters Series. He is currently ranked No. 38 […]