# Tim Boggan

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**Joseph R. "Tim" Boggan** (born September 24, 1930) is an American [table tennis](/source/Table_tennis) player, official, and historian. He is the official historian of [USA Table Tennis](/source/USA_Table_Tennis) (USATT) and is best known for his exhaustive multi-volume work documenting the history of the sport in the United States.[1]

## Career

Boggan served three terms as President of the United States Table Tennis Association (now USA Table Tennis) and spent 14 years as the editor of the organization's national publication.[2] Professionally, he was a professor of English at [Long Island University](/source/Long_Island_University) in Brooklyn for over 30 years before retiring to focus on his historical research.[2]

### Ping-Pong Diplomacy

In 1971, Boggan was a member of the historic U.S. delegation that traveled to the People's Republic of China. This event, popularly known as "[Ping-pong diplomacy](/source/Ping-pong_diplomacy)", is credited with beginning the process of normalizing relations between the U.S. and China.[3] Boggan's detailed chronicles of the trip serve as a primary historical record of the delegation's experiences.

## Historical Works

Boggan is the author of the monumental series *History of U.S. Table Tennis*, which consists of over 20 volumes. The series provides a year-by-year account of the sport's development, including tournament results, player biographies, and archival photography.[4] He also authored the book *Winning Table Tennis* (1976).

## Honors and Awards

- Inducted into the USA Table Tennis Hall of Fame (1985)[1]
- ITTF Merit Award
- Mark Matthews Lifetime Achievement Award (2006)

## Personal life

Boggan's sons, Scott and Eric Boggan, were both accomplished table tennis players and U.S. Men’s Singles Champions; both have also been inducted into the USA Table Tennis Hall of Fame.[2]

## References

1. ["Tim Boggan"](https://www.usatt.org/hall-of-fame/tim-boggan). *USA Table Tennis Hall of Fame*. Retrieved 2026-04-07.

1. Tim Boggan. ["History of U.S. Table Tennis - Vol. I: 1928-1939"](https://www.scribd.com/document/281735394/History-of-U-S-Table-Tennis-Vol-I-1928-1939). Retrieved 2026-04-07.

1. ["Ping-Pong Diplomacy: NGOs and International Relations"](https://resource.rockarch.org/story/ngos-and-international-relations-the-case-of-ping-pong-diplomacy/). *Rockefeller Archive Center*. Retrieved 2026-04-07.

1. ["Tim Boggan's History of U.S. Table Tennis Books"](https://www.timboggantabletennis.com/). Retrieved 2026-04-07.

## External links

- [USA Table Tennis Official Website](https://www.usatt.org/)
- [Tim Boggan's History of U.S. Table Tennis](https://www.timboggantabletennis.com/)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Tim Boggan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Boggan) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Boggan?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.