Posted by Matthew Hwang on March 04, 1999 at 23:16:58:
In Reply to: required playing area for championship table tennis posted by Jack Bassler on February 28, 1999 at 16:57:31:
Well, that is a good question. As you probably know, much more than the space taken up by the table is required for unobstructed play, more as the skill level increases.
Official information MAY be found at either www.usatt.org or www.ittf.org, but one can easily guess at the dimensions themselves. Temporary barriers can form the boundaries within the playing space you have found.
A good way to start is setting aside about 5 feet from either side of the table, and about 10 feet from either end of the table, for a rectangular region of about 50 feet square. Then ask several players to try playing, and see if they require more room in order not to be distracted by a boundary. If it seems that the players never go beyond a certain point, and that is far less than the area you had set aside, then you can slightly decrease the area accordingly to save space and possible add more tables.
I wish you success in your endeavors, table tennis can spread with hard work such as yours.
: I live in the retirement community of Leisure World, in Laguna Hills, California. The table tennis fans here have been rcently turned down for a new facility to house table tennis. We have some available spaces otherwise that I think could be easily converted for that use. We do hold tennis championships here but it would be nice for them to have their own facility rather than using an auditorium temporarily for those events. I would appreciate knowing how much floor space (the space around the standard 5' x 9' table) is needed for real championship play. For example, I know of a space that exists that is approximately 72' x 93' and I would think we could easily house 8 tables there. But I need verification. My Architectural Graphic Standards doesn't go into anything beyond, "standard" play. I would sincerely appreciate your help.