Table tennis is one of the traditional Paralympic sports and has been included in the Paralympic Games since the inaugural Games in Rome 1960. Standing players were included for the first time in 1976 in Toronto and athletes with cerebral palsy for the first time in 1980 in Arnhem, The Netherlands.

Para table tennis follows the laws set by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) with only slight modifications to the serving laws for athletes competing in wheelchairs. Athletes with a range of disabilities can take part and there are 11 different classifications: 1-5 for those competing in wheelchairs, 6-10 for those who play standing and 11 for those with an intellectual disability.