Ping Pong Diplomacy: How table tennis served as catalyst for improvement of US-China relations
Julia Griffin
During the Cold War era, the United States strived to stop the spread of Communism and promoted their ideologies of Democracy. Despite American efforts, the Communist party came to power in China in 1949. The US had refused to recognize the Chinese government as the legitimate government of the country and avoided normalizing diplomatic relations with Communist powers. However, tensions between China and the USSR grew due to both countries wanting to lead the international communist movement pushing both the US and China to reconsider their strained relationship by having a common enemy (Mergel, 2018). The event that brought these two countries together through ping-pong proves how miniscule details and events can greatly impact the course of history. The sport of table tennis served as a catalyst for the improvement of United States and China relations to further develop their own nation’s political gain.
Julia Griffin is a future history teacher who graduated from Chapin High School and is now a senior history-secondary ed major at Lander and a member of Phi Mu.
