Coaching Tip of the Week: The Forehand Down-the Line Block and Counterloop

November 23, 2020

(By Larry Hodges) When players loop to the forehand, almost invariably it is returned crosscourt, at least until you reach the higher levels. This can be effective, since it does give a wide angle to the forehand, and about 15.5 more inches going crosscourt then down the line. But it is so common that players […]

WAB CLUB FEATURE: Table Tennis Minnesota

November 22, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) Table Tennis Minnesota has three locations in the greater Minneapolis-St.Paul area. The Training Center location is on Concord Street in South St. Paul, the Jewish Center location is on Cedar Lake Road in Minneapolis, and the Bloomington Armory location is in Bloomington. Normally, the Training Center is open Monday-Thursday and Sunday and […]

ITTF World Tour Grand Finals: Ma Long Wins Sixth

November 22, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) The final RESTART Event, the 2020 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals, has finished in Zhengzhou, China. The Sixteen best Men and Women were narrowed down to the final two for Sunday’s Final – and two the most celebrated players of recent years closed out this very strange year on top. THE FINAL: […]

ITTF World Tour Grand Finals: A Fan/Ma Final Repeat

November 21, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) The final RESTART Event, the 2020 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals has advanced to the Final. The ITTF’s China Bubble moved to Zhengzhou, bringing sixteen of the world’s best Men and Women. UPDATE 2: Fan Zhendong and Ma Long Repeat The Saturday Semifinals saw Fan Zhendong and Ma Long advance – this […]

PongNow: Tahl Leibovitz

November 20, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) PongNow is an interview series talking table tennis with some of the best players and personalities in the sport. The guest this week is Tahl Leibovitz, among the most decorated American table tennis players ever. Tahl has over 50 international para championships, won a Paralympic Gold Medal, has won 13 Para Pan […]

ITTF World Tour Grand Finals: Another Day, Another Woojin Surprise

November 20, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) The ITTF’s China Bubble has moved to Zhengzhou for the third and final RESTART Event, the 2020 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals. Sixteen of the world’s best are competing – based upon accumulated point totals from previous tour events. UPDATE 1: Another Day, Another Woojin Surprise The headline of the first day […]

ITTF World Tour Grand Finals: Day 1

November 19, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) The ITTF’s China Bubble has moved to Zhengzhou for the third and final RESTART Event, the 2020 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals. Sixteen of the world’s best are competing – based upon accumulated point totals from previous tour events. The participating Men are: Fan Zhendong, Xu Xin, Ma Long, Harimoto, Lin Gaoyuan, […]

ITTF Announcement: Continued Effects of COVID on Tokyo

November 18, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) COVID-19 continues to cause disruptions in the table tennis world as different areas experience travel restrictions. Like other sports, table tennis has managed to use the “bubble” model to create safe environments for select events. Unfortunately, many of the Continental Federation qualifying events for the Olympic Games were unable to occur earlier this […]

Coaching Tip of the Week: Use Both Sides of the Body When Forehand Looping

November 16, 2020

(By Larry Hodges) Most players think of forehand looping as a shot done from their playing side. So a right-handed player might think of rotating his right side around as he loops his forehand. However, this will limit your power as well as throw off your balance. You should use your other side as well. […]

Behind the Curtain: Life in the ITTF Bubble with Joerg and Kanak

November 15, 2020

(by Steve Hopkins) The World Cup ended on Sunday (click here for the Butterfly article about the Semifinals and Finals) with Fan Zhendong securing the title in an All-Chinese Final. Some of the matches were amazing – a side effect of having a tournament filled with the best players in the world – but there […]