Pongfinity is a Finnish sports and comedy group focused around table tennis composed of Emil Rantatulkkila, Otto Tennilä, and Miikka O'Connor.[3] Their YouTube channel, which mainly displays trick shots related to the sport, is the 7th most-subscribed channel in Finland and the most-subscribed channel about table tennis.[3][4] Both Otto and Miikka are semi-professional players, earning medals in Finnish, Swedish, and Estonian championships.[3][5]
 Pongfinity's YouTube icon | ||||||||||
| Industry | Entertainment | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genre |
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| Predecessor | EditingSports | |||||||||
| Founded | 6 December 2012 (first channel created) 13 November 2015 (current channel created) | |||||||||
| Founders | Emil Rantatulkkila Otto Tennilä Miikka O'Connor | |||||||||
| Headquarters | Helsinki, Finland[1] | |||||||||
YouTube information | ||||||||||
| Channel | ||||||||||
| Years active | 2016 - present | |||||||||
| Subscribers | 4.51 million[2] | |||||||||
| Total views | 1.046 billion[2] | |||||||||
| Associated acts | ||||||||||
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Last updated: 19 September 2024 | ||||||||||
| Website | www | |||||||||
History
editBefore forming Pongfinity, Emil, Otto, and Miikka all competed in international table tennis competitions. All three became friends when they were on the Finnish junior national team,[1] but Emil did not end up chasing a professional career. Miikka and Emil had previously met when they played in the same club as juniors.[6] However, Otto and Miikka did and represented Finland during the European and World Table Tennis Championships several times. They did not win any medals during these tournaments.[3]
The group uploaded their first video on 16 December 2012, on a channel called EditingSports. Emil had been interested in editing videos and wanted to try it out, so he and Miikka filmed a training session where they had fun doing random trick shots to edit. After it was uploaded, it became apparent that the videos gained more attention from the trick shots than the editing, so they made the channel more focused on those. Otto first appeared in the following video. Pongfinity's first viral video was one where they extinguished a candle with a ball.[6]
Medal tables
editData adapted from Table Tennis Media. Emil does not have data on this site.[7][8]
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Table tennis | ||
| National Championships | ||
 |
2008 Tampere | Mixed Doubles |
| |
2013 Tampere | Singles |
 |
2013 Tampere | Doubles |
| |
2014 Seinäjoki | Singles |
| |
2014 Seinäjoki | Doubles |
| |
2016 Helsinki | Doubles |
| |
2017 Kuopio | Doubles |
| |
2018 Helsinki | Doubles |
 |
2019 Tampere | Doubles |
| |
2020 Tampere | Doubles |
| |
2021 Tampere | Singles |
| |
2021 Tampere | Doubles |
| |
2021 Tampere | Mixed Doubles |
| |
2022 Helsinki | Singles |
| |
2022 Helsinki | Mixed Doubles |
| |
2023 Helsinki | Mixed Doubles |
| |
2023 Helsinki | Doubles |
| |
2023 Helsinki | Singles |
| Club Championships | ||
| |
2007 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2010 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2011 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2012 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2013 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2015 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2016 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2017 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2018 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2019 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2022 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Table tennis | ||
| National Championships | ||
| |
2014 Seinäjoki | Mixed Doubles |
| |
2015 Helsinki | Doubles |
| |
2016 Helsinki | Doubles |
| |
2017 Kuopio | Doubles |
| |
2018 Helsinki | Doubles |
| |
2018 Helsinki | Mixed Doubles |
| |
2019 Tampere | Singles |
| |
2019 Tampere | Doubles |
| |
2019 Tampere | Mixed Doubles |
| |
2020 Helsinki | Singles |
| |
2020 Helsinki | Doubles |
| |
2020 Helsinki | Mixed Doubles |
| |
2021 Tampere | Doubles |
| |
2022 Helsinki | Doubles |
| Club Championships | ||
| |
2014 Norway 2nd | Fornebu BTK |
| |
2015 Finland 1st | Wega |
| |
2017 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2017 Sweden 3rd | Norrtulls SK |
| |
2018 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2018 Sweden 3rd | Norrtulls SK |
| |
2019 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
| |
2021 Estonia 1st | Maardu LTK |
| |
2022 Finland 1st | PT 75 |
Content and brand
Pongfinity has been frequently compared to the American sports comedy group Dude Perfect.[9][10] A major series on the channel is "Challenge Pongfinity," where viewers can comment challenges that the group will have to complete. The group has also collaborated with YouTubers such as Adam Bobrow and Zach King, and fellow table tennis players Benedek Oláh, Michael Maze, and Liu Guoliang. Pongfinity has also worked with athletes from other sports, in which they usually compete against table tennis by trying trick shots with variations based on the sport, or dedicating a video to that sport entirely. The group has done videos with Lassi Hurskainen, Kalle Koljonen, and Otto Virtanen.[2] Other series include individual matches with the members against each other and "Stereotypes", in which the group displays exaggerated personalities and playing styles that people can have when playing table tennis in short skits.[6]
In 2019, Pongfinity released a table tennis mobile game on iOS and Android through Linnama Entertainment. The game is endless and has random situations occurring at times in chosen locations.[11] Pongfinity also operates an online store selling table tennis equipment.[1]
References
- ^ a b c "Pongfinity Store". Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ a b c "About Pongfinity". YouTube.
- ^ a b c d "Pongfinity – How Good Are They Outside Of Doing Trick Shots?". Table Tennis Media. 23 December 2021. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "Top 100 YouTubers in Finland sorted by subscribers". SocialBlade. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
- ^ Moore, Jack (30 July 2016). "This Screwy Table Tennis Shot Might Make You Believe in Magic". GQ. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ a b c Rantatulkkila, Emil; Tennilä, Otto; Miikka, O'Connor (4 December 2019). "How Pongfinity Reached 1 Million Subscribers". YouTube. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "Otto Tennilä". Table Tennis Media. 10 December 2021. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "Miikka O'Connor". Table Tennis Media. 8 December 2021. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ Schlosser, Kurt (6 October 2016). "Just watch these amazing ping-pong trick shots before you play another game in your tech office". GeekWire. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
- ^ Hall, Jackson (7 November 2019). "Pongfinity: A Reminder Of What Creativity Can Be". The Cardinal & Cream. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
- ^ "Top 10 Free Table Tennis Ping Pong Games for Android". United News of Bangladesh. 16 February 2022. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.