What the Laws Left Open: Provisions Adopted in Kimwipe Table Tennis Practice, 2016–2026
International Kimwipe Table Tennis Association
Scientific Sports®, Vol. 11, No. 2, pp. 4–8
Published
Not peer-reviewed. This review was reviewed by the editor only.
Abstract
The Laws of Kimwipe table tennis published in this journal in 2016 fixed the instrument, the playing surface and a condition on the ball, and deliberately left open the service, the scoring of a game and a match, the treatment of a tie, the dimensions of the court, the order of play, and the method by which the stronger player is identified. This review collects, from the sources available, the provisions that groups playing the sport have adopted for each of those points over the decade since: cooperative bench play reported in 2018, festival play the same year, and the written requirements of the first All-Japan championship in 2023. Four of the open points have been settled in practice by taking them from table tennis; two, the net and the court, in a direction the Laws did not anticipate; one, the determination of a winner, remains where the Laws left it. None has yet been argued for in print.
Keywords
Kimwipe table tennis, rules, practice, meetings
How to cite
Iwatsuki, K. (2026). What the Laws Left Open: Provisions Adopted in Kimwipe Table Tennis Practice, 2016–2026. Scientific Sports, 11(2), 4–8.
@article{Iwatsuki2026,
author = {Iwatsuki, Kenichi},
title = {What the {L}aws {L}eft {O}pen: {P}rovisions {A}dopted in {K}imwipe {T}able {T}ennis {P}ractice, 2016–2026},
journal = {Scientific Sports},
year = {2026},
volume = {11},
number = {2},
pages = {4--8},
url = {https://journal.iktta.org/articles/11/2/11-2-2-abstract.html}
}
Copyright
© 2026 International Kimwipe Table Tennis Association.