If history is any indication, this game of give and take may be just the thing to bring about gender harmony in sports. Early in the 70's, the fifth best American player refused to play his opponent because she was a woman. Today, the fifth best American player IS a woman. To get ping pong noticed in America, we need to draw people's attention to this closing gender gap. Colleges should lead the way.
Ping pong is already gender-integrated in most colleges.
We need to make that official. In order to make ping pong a unisex sport, women-only events must go. In return, an affirmative-action program should be launched to increase women participation. Besides a strong recruiting campaign, there should be scholarships for women and an application to NCAA under the gender-equity guidelines. This would encourage participation at the high school level.