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Sex Sells

By Todd Welter

Swimming, gymnastics, and Usain Bolt's victory celebrations have captured the hearts and minds of the world.  Yet, table tennis has gone largely ignored.  So much so, that it is one of the least attended events at the Olympics.  That is right, Beijing, China is ignoring its most beloved sport.  Instead of getting everyone to watch Forrest Gump, some in the International Table Tennis Federation believe they need a new approach to draw in attention.  No, they are not going to invite Michael Phelps to go for a ninth gold medal.  Instead, they are going with rule number one in marketing:  Sell sex.  That is right the ITTF wants its women players to dress more sexy.  It worked for real tennis so why not ping-pong.  Although, unless you get some of the Girls Next Door (the link is a safe for work, trust me) from Playboy, I don't think anybody will be tuning in to watch the table tennis gold medal match.  Now, I will say synchronized swimming is missing out on a ratings bonanza by banning what the Spanish synchronized swim team wanted to wear for its routine.