Table tennis at the Summer Olympics | |
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Governing body | ITTF |
Events | 4 (men: 2; women: 2) |
Games | |
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Table tennis competition has been in the Summer Olympic Games since 1988, with singles and doubles events for men and women. Athletes from China have dominated the sport, winning a total of 53 medals in 32 events, including 28 out of a possible 32 gold medals, and only failing to at least medal in one event, the inaugural Men's Singles event at the 1988 Summer Olympics.
In 1992 (only), two bronze medals were awarded in each event. Due to China's dominance in the sport the format was changed for the 2012 Olympics, such that only two competitors from each country can enter (instead of 3). This format makes it such that one country cannot win all three top medals - as has been the case during both the Individual Men's and Women's events at the Beijing Olympic tournament, where China dominated and won all 6 medals. In 2008, the doubles events were replaced by team events to lessen the emphasis on doubles play.