Abstract
The purpose of this study was to clarify practical knowledge of improving service skills to increase competitiveness level of table tennis players using sport sciences. The practice of sport science support has been ongoing for three years, focusing on players from 13 years to 18 years who belonged to the Japanese Olympic Committee elite academy team. Two experiments per year were conducted. A high-speed camera (1000Hz) was used to measure the rotation speed of the service ball and two normal speed cameras (30Hz) were used to measure players’ movements. A meeting was held on the day after each experiment to discuss the results, during which each player, his/her coach, and staff who analyzed the experimental data clarified the technical challenges for the player. 9 male players and 7 female players participated at least once in both the experiments and the meetings during the 3-year period. The main results were as follows. 1) Range of rotation speed for the male players’ services was from 35.7rps to 83.3rps, and that of the female players’ services was from 16.4rps to 66.7rps. No-spin services were not included in these
