Table Tennis Training with a Robot

Jasna Reed is the type of athlete who brings attention to her sport. She has a tremendous amount of skill and just as much personality. Born in Bosnia-Herzegovina on December 20, 1970, Jasna was not one of those youngsters who was excited to play table tennis. In fact, to hear her tell it, she did not really like table tennis at all. Her parents wanted her to learn the game so they would drop her off at a table tennis training center for lessons. As soon as they left, so did Jasna, sneaking next door to watch other students training in karate or gymnastics. Her dislike for the game changed when she won her first tournament. She enjoyed the feeling of winning and it was a big enough draw to keep her in the sport.

Jasna is a four time Olympian, competing as a member of the Yugoslavia team in 1988 and 1992, and as a member of the United States team in 2000 and 2004. She won a bronze medal in the Women’s Doubles at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, Korea. She has often been named as one of the top ten players in the world, winning championships around the world. In 1992, after war had torn apart her home country, Jasna left to play table tennis in Belgium and then Japan. The money was decent, but she did not feel at home so she left. While playing tournaments in the U.S. she was approached with an offer to coach at a new training facility in exchange for an academic scholarship to Oakland University in Michigan. In 2002, when Texas Wesleyan University began its table tennis program, Jasna was the first recruit. These days she is the head coach for the university as well as a member of their table tennis team, all while pursuing her doctorate in education. For the first time in a long time Jasna feels at home. She hopes to one day become a teacher at the university where she has been welcomed so warmly.

Jasna did not earn a place on the U.S. team for the 2008 Olympics. She acknowledges that she may be on her way down the rankings field. She points to the lack of serious competition in the United States as one of the reasons she and other here are not able to compete on the international stage. One of the reasons she agreed to coach at TWU was her desire to help keep the program at its highest level. The university recruits players from outside of the United States, which, Jasna explains, helps U.S. athletes because it gives them tougher competition, enabling them the opportunity to be challenged and improve their game. Without more challenging competition, the United States is unlikely to rise to a level capable of earning a medal at any Olympics. U.S. Olympic Women’s coach, Doru Gheorghe, believes Jasna will help U.S. table tennis athletes to become more competitive while gaining more support from this country. He feels that she is capable of taking table tennis in a new direction, getting the sport in the public’s eye, and making them want to watch.

Thank you for visiting TableTennis.com!  We encourage you to continue browsing through our site for more articles about table tennis games and table tennis clubs and for lots of great table tennis videos.  For more information on how to improve your table tennis game (whether you’re playing indoor table tennis or outdoor table tennis), visit our eBay Table Tennis Store where you can learn about the Newgy Robo-Pong table tennis robot.  Visit Newgy.com for more information straight from the manufacturer on how to play table tennis with this robot.

Popularity: 86%

Table Tennis was introduced to the people of China in 1901 by the Westerners who settled in their country. The Chinese people enjoyed the recreational game immensely and played regularly. Their natural ability and dedication to training would eventually lead them to dominate the sport. China entered the World Championships for the first time in 1953. Six years later, Rong Guotuan became the first Chinese athlete to win a World Championship title in any sport. The country enjoyed the recognition of being at the top and began to dedicate extensive resources to training other potential champions and to experiment with equipment modifications.  In 1961, with extensive training, Zhuang Zedong won the Men’s Singles Title for China at the World Championships and returned to defend and retain his title three consecutive years. Chinese athlete Xhang Xi Lin further cemented his country’s reputation as table tennis leaders when he became the first athlete to use a combination bat during play. Dedication and innovation are two words used often when describing the Chinese table tennis system.

During a difficult time in China, from around 1965 to 1971, while under the rule of Ma Tse-Tung, China disappeared from the table tennis world stage. They continued to train, but did not compete in international competitions. China was essentially shut off from most of the world during this time. In 1971, the sport of table tennis acted as an equalizer to help mend broken bridges.  Love of the game  enabled teams from several countries to come together in China for a series of friendship matches. These matches acted as a catalyst to re-open communication between the United States and China.  Chinese Premier, Zhou Enlai, proclaimed that the USA table tennis team’s visit to China had opened the door for people- to- people exchanges between China and the United States.

When China returned to the table tennis scene they made their presence felt. In 1981, the Chinese athletes won all seven gold medals at the World Championships held in Yugoslavia. The Chinese athletes dominated the field from this point forward, with few exceptions. In 1995, Chinese athletes once again won all seven gold medals at the World Championships, this time held in China. They repeated this feat time and time again: at the World Championships in Japan in 2001, in 2005 at the World Championships in China, 2007 in Croatia, and at the championship of all championships, China won all of the Gold Medals at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

The table tennis community acknowledges that China is a formidable opponent. They also recognize the high level of skill achieved by the average Chinese player who lives and trains in China. Athletes from around the world flock to China to train with the exceptional coaches who train the Chinese team.  The level of talent in China is so great that athletes who are ranked as some of the best players in the world are not able to earn a spot on their own national team. In the past these players have left China and become citizens of other countries where they would be able to play on a national team. The ITTF has decided this is not a fair practice and has implemented changes to prevent Chinese players from moving to a new country for the sole purpose of being able to play on a national team.

Thank you for visiting TableTennis.com!  We encourage you to continue browsing through our site for more articles about table tennis games and table tennis clubs and for lots of great table tennis videos.  For more information on how to improve your table tennis game (whether you’re playing indoor table tennis or outdoor table tennis), visit our eBay Table Tennis Store where you can learn about the Newgy Robo-Pong table tennis robot.  Visit Newgy.com for more information straight from the manufacturer on how to play table tennis with this robot.

Popularity: 100%

Toronto Canada has one of the fastest growing populations of table tennis athletes. The area is home to many table tennis clubs, large and small. Considered by some to be an elite table tennis club, Top Spin Table Tennis Centre was founded in 2002 by Elena Shkrab, a coach and champion player with more than 35 years of experience. She has won championships in the Ukraine and Israel and has coached the Israeli National Team. Top Spin Table Tennis Centre offers eleven ITTF approved table tennis tables in a large air-conditioned gymnasium. Professional coaches are available to provide individual attention to club members. The club offers private, semi-private, and group lessons. Contact the center for rates and schedules. Tournaments, camps, and league opportunities are also offered. Top Spin Table Tennis Center is located at 7026 Bathurst Street in Toronto. The center can be reached at (905) 326-9570.

My Table Tennis Club is one of the largest table tennis clubs in Canada. Located on 80E Centurian Drive in Markham, Ontario (close to Toronto), the club is open daily from 9:30am to 10:30pm. Certain hours are designated for “member only” access to the club. Individual annual memberships are available for $300, day passes are $6. MyTTC facilities encompass 9,000 square feet, featuring 38 foot high ceilings, lighting that is acceptable for professional matches, twenty ITTF approved tournament tables, a coffee and snack bar, changing rooms with lockers, a lounge area with big screen television, and a Pro-shop with wholesale and retail professional table tennis equipment. MyTTC offers professional coaching through the My Table Tennis Training School. Individual classes range from $20 to $45 per hour depending upon the level of coaching required and the credentials of the chosen coach. Group lessons are organized by placing up to four students of similar skill sets in a class. Each group training course consists of nine, one and a half hour lessons and costs $250.

Toronto Table Tennis Club, located at 944 Lawrence Avenue West in Toronto, is home base for the Canadian National Team Coach, Wang Enlong. Club hours are Monday through Friday 5:30pm to 10:00pm and weekends 1:00pm to 6:00pm. While the club is small compared to newer facilities that are being built in the area, there are five tables and consistently skilled players to compete against. Locals and serious table tennis athletes call this “Coach Wang’s Club” and recommend it over more commercialized options.

Dixie Table Tennis Club offers eight competition quality tables at their location in the Burnhamthorpe Community Center located at 1500 Gulleden Road in Toronto. The club is open on Tuesday evenings from 7:30 to 10:30pm. Memberships are seasonal and are offered in the summer at a rate of $40 for adults and $30 for junior players under the age of sixteen. Fall-winter memberships are offered at a rate of $60 for adults and $40 for juniors. Memberships are limited and often sell out. Non-members are welcome when space is available at a rate of $5 per night for adults and $3 for juniors. The club also offers league and tournament opportunities.

For more information on how to improve your table tennis game, visit our eBay Table Tennis Store where you can learn about the Newgy Robo-Pong table tennis robot.  Visit Newgy.com for more information straight from the manufacturer.

Popularity: 43%