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Table Tennis

Table Tennis

Introduction

Para table tennis follows the laws set by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) with only slight modifications to the serving laws for athletes competing in wheelchairs.

Each player aims to hit the ball over the net on to the opponent's half of the table and wins the point if they fail to return it successfully.

Sport Details

The Rules

A match is played over the best of five sets, with each set won by the first player to reach 11 points. A two-point winning margin is required to win each set. The server changes every two points.

Competitions take the form of preliminary rounds followed by knockout stages.

The team events are played over the best of three matches - starting with a doubles and then one or two singles matches to decide the tie.

Athletes with a range of impairments can take part and there are 11 different classifications: 1-5 for those competing in wheelchairs, 6-10 for those who play standing and 11 for standing athletes with a learning disability.

Athletes are assessed and allocated a number between 1 and 10, depending on their functional ability - reach, muscle strength, locomotive restrictions, balance and ability to grip the bat. In the wheelchair category those competing in class 1 have the highest level of impairment with class 6 being for standing athletes with the highest level of impairment.

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