The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) is the governing body for all national table tennis associations. The role of the ITTF includes overseeing rules and regulations and seeking technological improvement for the sport of table tennis. The ITTF is responsible for the organization of numerous international competitions, including the World Table Tennis Championships that has continued since 1926. Founding history The ITTF was founded in 1926 by William Henry Lawes from Wymondham, the nine founding members being Austria, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, England, Germany, Hungary, British India, Sweden, and Wales. The first international tournament was held in January 1926 in Berlin, while the first World Table Tennis Championships was held in December 1926 in London. Toward the end of 2000, the ITTF instituted several rules changes aimed at making table tennis more viable as a televised spectator sport. The older 38 mm balls were officially replaced by 40 mm balls. This increased the ball's air resistance, and effectively slowed down the game. In 2003, the ITTF moved its headquarters from Hastings to Lausanne and set the ITTF Museum there. In 2007, the governance for para table tennis was transferred from the International Paralympic Committee to the ITTF. In February 2008, the ITTF announced several rules changes after an ITTF Executive Meeting in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China with regards to a player's eligibility to play for a new association. The new ruling was to encourage associations to develop their own players. In 2019, the ITTF created its subsidiary World Table Tennis (WTT) to manage all its commercial and events business. The ITTF's current headquarters are located in Lausanne while their Asia-Pacific office is based in Singapore and search for a new site for headquarters is in the process. The current president is Petra Sörling from Sweden. Sörling became the eighth person to hold the office in 2021. Membership The ITTF recognises five continental federations. There are currently 227 member associations within the ITTF. Organisational structure All member associations of the ITTF attend annual general meeting (AGM). Agendas on changes of the constitution, laws of table tennis, applications for membership etc. are discussed and finalised through votes. Also, the president of ITTF, 8 executive vice-presidents, and 32 or less continental representatives are elected at an AGM, serving for a four-year term. The president, executive vice-presidents, and the chairman of the athletes' commission compose executive committee. The executive committee, continental representatives and presidents of the five