Also known as ping pong, table 
tennis evolved from lawn tennis 
in the 1870s. Its  popularity 
waxed and waned in Europe and 
the US in the latter part of the 
19th and early 20th century.  But 
the Asians really embraced the 
game, and by the 1950s, the 
Koreans, Japanese and Chinese 
had come to dominate the sport.  

Table tennis only became an 
official Olympic event in 1988, 
with four events -- men's and 
women's singles and doubles.  
The Chinese and Koreans have 
dominated the event, but in 1992 
Swede Jan Ove Waldner took 
home the men's Gold.