Pickleball in Canada

Pickleball is unusual amongst all other racquet sports in that it is played primarily by people over the age of 55. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Arizona where pickleball has become an obsession in several gated retirement communities populated by Canadian snow birds.

However, as the sport grows and as more people under 55 discover it, the demographics for pickleball are beginning to change. Over the past five years, younger players have discovered that pickleball is not just a recreational diversion for seniors. It can also be a fast-paced athletic challenge demanding 600-plus calories per hour.

Unlike tennis, which requires a certain level of technical accomplishment before long rallies can occur, pickleball players can begin engaging in long rallies almost immediately. This is especially true when players come into pickleball from a background in other racquet sports.

The Canadian National Pickleball Championships held in Calgary in July 2011 are a prime example of this emerging shift in pickleball demographics. All of the gold medals — except one — were won by players under 55 who started playing pickleball less than 12 months earlier. In fact, Patti MacPhee who won two gold medals, was playing pickleball for only the fourth time in her life when she took to the court to play her first tournament match in Calgary.

MacPhee comes from a racquet sports background and plays both squash and paddle tennis regularly. So the transition to pickleball was a natural one for her. Winning a gold medal in doubles may have been a foregone conclusion due to the fact that her partner, Kevin Doucet, is the top male pickleball player in Canada. However, any doubts about her ability to perform alone on the pickleball court were cast aside the moment she won a gold medal in the Women’s Singles event.

MacPhee, Doucet and other medalists from Calgary are not afraid of fast moving balls nor do they shy away from exertion. They come into pickleball from sports where ball speeds occasionally top 100 mph. They also step onto the pickleball court expecting to lunge, squat and otherwise exert themselves to the tune of 600-plus calories per hour.

It is not surprising, therefore, that some pickleball clubs are erecting barriers to keep MacPhee and her cohort of energetic young pickleball players out of their programs and tournaments. Many pickleballers see pickleball as a game for seniors-only and would like to keep it that way.

Five years ago pickleball programs and tournaments were typically open to everyone. Now there are several in the USA that specify 55 as the cut off age. Players younger than that are not welcome and must play elsewhere, if they are to play at all. At the same time, new rules are being passed to slow the game down and prevent paddle innovations that will add speed or require higher levels of athleticism. Some people, it appears, will go to great lengths to ensure that pickleball is and will remain a slow-paced, seniors-only game.

Is this a wise move on the part of pickleball organizers and promoters? Certainly not here in Canada.

The rules that govern sport in Canada are clear and unequivocal. In order to receive recognition and funding from Sport Canada, representative bodies must ensure that their sports are open to all ages. Any indication of bias against players under 55 would be a death sentence for national pickleball funding.

A more appropriate response is to create skill-based divisions and to allow athletes to choose to compete in divisions that interest them, regardless of age. As in other sports, younger players will trend toward the middle and higher levels of competition while older players will trend toward the middle and lower levels. In this way, all players will feel welcome and at home in their sport and nobody will feel as though rules are being created simply to keep them out.

No related posts.