Pickleball: The Sport Everyone Can Play

Ever heard of Pickleball? It’s one of the newest sports to hit the courts in Belize, and it’s quickly gaining popularity among tourists and expats. Players say it’s a game for everyone. Imagine tennis, but with paddles like those in ping-pong, played on a smaller court. In tonight’s edition of Belize on Reel, News Five’s Britney Gordon chats with some of the players who are working hard to bring Belizeans and foreigners together for a friendly game of pickleball. Here’s the story.

 

Britney Gordon, Reporting

Anyone can play pickleball. It’s a two-to-four-player sport very similar to tennis, that has recently risen to popularity among racquet sport enthusiasts. The difference? A lower net, a smaller court, and racquets have been replaced with ping-pong-like paddles. These differences make for a low-intensity game, easy for children, elders and everyone in between to pick up. Over the past few years, the sport has exploded in popularity in the United States and has now hit the Belizean sporting scene. Recently, a group of pickleball enthusiasts hosted a national tournament in Placencia. One of the organizers, Linda Hayes, tells us why she believes pickleball has become so popular.

 

Linda Hayes, Tournament Organizer

“I think it’s because everybody can play. So we have people, sometimes we see families with kids here that come play, so we get to meet tourists that way. We also have a lot of retired people here that are older and they can still play. So even if you are maybe not in really good shape, you could still play. You’re not gonna play at the same level as some of the other people, but everybody can do it. I was terrible at racquet sports, so for me, it was sort of an adjustment, but it was the easiest one to learn. And again, it’s good exercise as well. So that’s really the reason I wanted something besides running because running’s a bit boring.”

 

While pickleball is easy to learn, finding a place to play can be a bit tricky. The court is relatively small, measuring just twenty by forty-four feet, which is crucial for the game’s rhythm and low intensity. Luckily, Sirenian Bay Resort in Placencia is encouraging both tourists and locals to dive into the sport. They offer their courts for tournaments, and you can reserve them any day for a small fee. John Binet, one of the tournament champions, has only been playing for about two years. He shared how they managed to bring players from all over the country together for some friendly competition.

 

John Binet, Pickleball Player

”We want to include as many people in Belize to come out. We have really good players in Placencia, really great players in Hopkins, and that’s who we play with. Our group here of twenty to thirty people. There are really great players in San Pedro and in other parts of the country, so we really wanted to get everybody to come together. It’s such a great time when you get a pile of people together. So that was our motivation. We had sixteen teams turn out, thirty-two people. We had a knockout and a round robin, played the whole tournament in about five hours. Had lots of prizes at the end and a really great time.”

 

Although Pickleball is a hit among expats and tourists, Belizeans haven’t quite caught on yet. But Hayes isn’t discouraged. Through her Facebook page, Placencia Pickleballers, she keeps promoting the sport and inviting the public to join in on the fun events.

 

Linda Hayes

“I would say that’s harder. So in our tournament, we had one local that played, David, and he comes here and plays a lot. So that’s great that we had him. We used to have a guy who worked at the resort that played all the time. He’s not here anymore. So that’s, that’s it. And so trying to get them, even though we have a Facebook page, it’s a bit harder. So I’m really hoping we can get more people to come out and play. And I think the problem is they don’t know about it.”

 

Sports such as basketball, volleyball, and football are among the most popular in Belize, but Binet is confident that athletes looking to branch out and try something new will quickly take a liking to pickleball.

 

John Binet

”My main sport was badminton growing up, and I find that in badminton, you play a lot of risks. There’s a lot of wrist action, whereas in tennis, there’s a lot of full-arm motion. Pickleball is right in between the two. So when you’re playing at the net, you can play with your wrist and when you’re back at the court, you can play with your arm. But the main difference is the court is smaller than a tennis court, and when you play doubles, you’re only playing in a small area with a partner. So it’s not like you’re running all over this big huge court and you have to have a cardio workout to play, depending on how you can control your shots, you don’t necessarily need to move a whole lot. So that’s why I think one of the main attractions between young people and old people is that it’s a lot less motion, easier to play from that perspective.”

 

Today, Hayes is at the forefront of encouraging people to play pickleball, but just four years ago, she was a newbie herself, learning the ropes in San Pedro. She credits the warm and welcoming community in Belize for making her feel comfortable enough to try something new and get into the sport.

 

Linda Hayes

“The people that play pickleball are extremely nice and don’t be afraid to come in and say, I don’t know what I’m doing. Can you help me? So a lot of us are intimidated to do something new, including me, I wouldn’t have just came out here and played by myself because I even know I’m. Not really shy at all. I still feel intimidated if I don’t know how to do something. But here I would say everybody, it’s the nicest place I’ve ever been. So if you come here and say, I don’t know who can kind of help me with it, you’ll find people all the time and they’ll tell you who you should be playing with and they will teach you the rules.”

 

Britney Gordon for News Five.