Ping-pong

International ping pong rules

The World Championship of Ping Pong (WCPP) will have the following format and rules.

Prize Money/Eligibility

Total prize money awarded at the 2011 WCPP will be over $100, 000 USD, all participants will receive cash prizes. The only eligible candidates to receive the prize money will be the 16 contestants approved by the WCPP board. To be reviewed for considerations please submit the attached registration document. Players will be chosen and seeded at the discretion of the board no later than November 1st 2010. Player conduct that is considered inappropriate at any point during the registration process or match play will result in that player being replaced or ejected by the WCPP. Contestants that are replaced will be ineligible for future events. Prize money will be divided between the “Championship” and the “Marco Polo Cup”.

The champion of Bracket A will compete against the champion of Bracket B in “The Classic” for a grand prize of $41, 000 USD. The second place finisher will receive $7, 000. The contestants that finish third and fourth will receive prizes of $6, 000 and $4, 000 USD respectively. Contestants that finish 5th-16th will receive $2, 625 each.

The winning team members of the “Marco Polo Cup” will receive a prize of $1, 000. Team members of the losing team will receive $350.

All contestants who win prize amounts in excess of $600 dollars are required to file the appropriate tax withholding and reporting forms, whether U.S. citizen, resident alien, or non-resident alien.

Equipment

All equipment used in the tournament must be listed in the Official WCPP Equipment Guide. Equipment sold via this website courtesy of the WCPP is deemed to be eligible for all matches.

All players must use the official WCPP hardbat sandpaper paddles. The WCPP custom paddles are composed of high grain sandpaper and carbon graphite. All players selected will be given an official WCPP paddle to use prior to each match to ensure competiveness.

Balls will be 40mm in diameter and weigh 2.7g (± .1 grams). The net will be 15.25 cm high and the post will not be more than 15.25 cm outside of the side lines.

All tables used in WCPP matches will be 2.74 m long and 1.525 m wide, and be 75-77 cm from the ground. Each net used will be 15.25cm raised above the table. All tables used in the match will be preselected from the official equipment catalogue.

General Rules

The below General Rules apply to all WCPP events.

A serve is considered legal in all WCPP matches when the ball is tossed at least 5.75 inches in the air. All serves must first strike the server’s side of the table before proceeding to the opponent’s side of the table. If the ball is legally served and is obstructed by the net, but the ball proceeds to the opponent’s side, it will be considered a let serve.

The service must toss the ball near vertically upward and fall before being struck by the server. The ball may not spin out of the server’s hand, and the service must be conducted behind the server’s end line.

A ball is considered in play when it touches the “upper surface” of the table; thus, if a ball does not touch the aforementioned surface it will be considered “not in play”.

Points will be awarded to you if your opponent commits any of the following:

1. Fails to correctly serve or return the ball.
2. Obstructs the ball or table in any way deemed inappropriate by the referee.
3. Does not properly return or serve the ball to a surface deemed “in-play”.
4. Does not strike the ball on his side of the table before it crosses over to his opponent’s territory.
5. A double striking of the ball occurs at any point.
6. Tries to return the ball after it has hit an object not in play (e.g. player’s hand, foreign objects, ground…).
7. If the opponent or any of his equipment or carries moves the playing surface, or touches the net assembly.
8. If a player’s coach is present, coaching is allowed only in between games and not during gameplay.

“The Classic”

This event will feature a bracket-style tournament featuring the top champion from each of the following countries:

Official WCPP games are played to 21 points. The Championship round in the WCPP will be played in a best of three format. Players will rotate sides after each completed match. Each competitor shall serve for two consecutive points after the initial rally and then rotate service with opponent. Every match must be won by a two point margin.

The WCPP allows each competitor to use a single two (2) point ball at any time during each match, providing players a chance to score two points in one rally

“The Marco Polo Cup” featuring The Rumble

The “Marco Polo Cup” is an innovative team ping-pong match, pitting the World Team/players vs. the Asian Team/players. It will consist of three separate events; the team with the highest cumulative point total will win the “Marco Polo Cup”.

Event 1

Each team will be awarded one point for winning one of 8 single matches (individual matches to 21 points). The total points awarded will be 8.

Event 2

Each team will be awarded two points for winning one of the 4 doubles matches (doubles matches to 21 points). The total points awarded will be 8.

Event 3

Furthermore, each team will be awarded the number of points they win in “The Rumble”. The first annual event will continue until one group scores 50 points. Players will be ranked from 1-8 by the honorary team coach. They will play for 1 point at a time until they lose a point.

Once a player loses a point he will be replaced by the next person on his team and will move to the back of his team’s line, while the winner of the point continues playing. Each player who wins a rally wins one single point for his team. This cycle will continue until one team reaches 50 points with a positive margin of 4 points and is declared the winning team.

The winning team will be awarded at least 50 points, the losing team shall be awarded the number of points they accumulated in the event. Upon completion of all three events the total points from each team will be tallied, the team with the highest point total shall be declared the winning team.