| Biography | In England two rival organisations were set up The Table Tennis Association' being formed on 12 th December 1901 and 4 days later The Ping Pong Association'. The two then amalgamated as The United Table Tennis and Ping Pong Association' on 1st May 1903 later reverting back to the title The Table Tennis Association'. Unfortunately the merger came too late to prevent the decline and near extinction of the game in England with the Association ceasing to exist during 1904 with only a few organised outposts' in Sunderland, Manchester, Plymouth and Bristol.
The game, however, gained in popularity in central Europe between 1905 and 1910. Before this a modified version had been introduced in Japan, later spreading to China and Korea.
In the early 1920s the game began its revival in England and Europe. In England this was mainly due to the efforts of the Hon. Ivor Montagu, academics at Cambridge University and a number of stalwarts from the earlier years of the sport who had set up a club at St Bride's Institute in London. The name of Ping Pong had been registered as a trademark so the Table Tennis Association was reconstituted in 1922 with the prefix English' being added in 1927.
The International Table Tennis Federation was formed in 1926 with the first World Championships being held in London that year. These were later held in Budapest in 1929 and were won by Fred Perry of tennis fame. More national associations were formed and a standardisation of the rules began in both Europe and the Far East.
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