WORLD TABLE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS:
The first World Table Tennis Championship was held in 1926. Since 1957, it has been held every other year. There are seven different trophies up for grabs, including both the men’s singles and the women’s singles. The doubles come in three formats: men’s, women’s and mixed.
The bi-annual tournament was dominated by the Hungarian team when it started. Since the 1960s, China has been the dominant power - both in the men’s and women’s categories. The tournament is governed and organised by the International Table Tennis Federation.
OLYMPIC GAMES
Table tennis may have been around since the second half of the nineteenth century but it has only been an Olympic sport since 1988. In that time, China has destroyed the opposition, winning multiple medals. In 2012, it was decided that each country could enter only two players to prevent China from taking the gold, silver and bronze across the board.
COMMONWEALTH GAMES
The Commonwealth Games has included table tennis in its line up of sports since 2002. Every four years, nations from Commonwealth meet to compete in the ‘Friendly Games’.
If you enjoy betting on table tennis, the Commonwealth Games is certainly an option worth considering because the sport’s dominant powers are absent. This gives the rest of the world the opportunity to take a gold medal in table tennis and certainly makes the betting markets far more interesting.
TABLE TENNIS WORLD CUP
The Table Tennis World Cup was inaugurated in the 1980s and has been held annually ever since. It was initially only a men’s singles competition but now includes both team and women’s events.
Once again, China dominates the medal listings, with some occasional interruptions from Germany and Sweden. Participants in the competition include the previous winner, the current world champion and the strongest players from each of the six continents.
ITTF WORLD TOUR
The ITTF World Tour follows the same basic model as other world tour competitions such as golf and tennis. Organised by the International Table Tennis Federation, the tour is an annual series of table tennis tournaments, held at various locations around the world.
Players earn points when they play and rank. The tour is split into three different tiers - the Challenge Series, the Major Series and the Super Series. In recent years, there have been 12 annual tournaments.
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
This is arguably the biggest table tennis tournament that doesn’t come directly under the governance of the ITTF. Organised by the European Table Tennis Union, the European Table Tennis Championships is a bi-annual event with a heavy emphasis on younger players.
There are seven categories in play - men's singles, doubles, and team; women's singles, doubles, and team, and mixed doubles.