PickleballBC announces that it is hosting a Deaf-only tournament at Harry Jerome Sports Centre in Burnaby on Sunday September 18th 2022. More details to come but here is some initial information:
Harry Jerome 26,000+ sq ft Sports Centre, Burnaby, BC
On August 6th, 2022, 550 participants across BC and Canada participated in Move for Freedom, an annual fundraising event by Ally Global. Ally Global is a Canadian non-profit organization that helps survivors of human trafficking in Nepal, Cambodia and Laos by providing safe homes and after care. Ally also works alongside and supports other Canadian non-profits and agencies. This year over 70 teams participated in different activities they love from paddle boarding to mountain climbing and raised a total of $607,564.00 for Ally Global. Jo Li of the PoCoMo Pickleball Club stated: "Our 20 member team “Dill With It!” (age range 36 - mid 70’s) played pickleball for 4 hours and through 130 generous donors, raised $20,283.00 (initial fundraising goal was $15K). Most of our team belongs to the PoCoMo Pickleball Club which represents players in Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Anmore and Belcarra. In 2021 “Dill With It!” was a small team of 7, and I was pleasantly surprised how so many of my pickleball friends and family were willing to join our team this year, fundraise and raise awareness for a charity most of them had never heard of. We had to keep our team to 20 players due to court availability, but plan to grow our team again in 2023... We’re hoping more pickleball groups in the Lower Mainland and across BC form Move for Freedom teams next year. We had a lot of fun on event day and it was a wonderful opportunity for us to play our favorite sport while supporting a worthy cause." Access the Ally Global website here. Date for Freedom 2023 is currently TBD but watch here for updates!! Jo Li's "Dill With It" Team
The Vernon Pickleball Association (VPA) along with Pickleball Depot, are fired up for the inaugural ‘Rally in the Valley Powered by Pickleball Depot’ pickleball Tournament taking place August 12th – 14th at the National Bank Financial – Okanagan Wealth Advisors (OWA) Pickleball Complex, located at 6601B Okanagan Landing Road, Vernon. Richard Chambers, VPA Tournament Committee Chairperson says, “"The VPA is excited to host the three-day 'Rally in the Valley’ pickleball tournament. Two hundred fifty players from all corners of the province are supported by 120 volunteers. It is our 4th and largest tournament of the year. Pickleball players from around Canada are eager to visit Vernon to take advantage of our wonderful covered facility and all that Vernon has to offer." The tournament is sanctioned by Pickleball Canada and Pickleball BC and is a competitive doubles tournament. Women’s Doubles takes place Friday, Mixed Doubles on Saturday and Men’s Doubles on Sunday, with games starting at 8 a.m. each day. Cara Arding, owner of Pickleball Depot says “"We are thrilled to have the opportunity of title tournament sponsor with the club who has supported us since our business inception. We have worked closely with the Vernon Pickleball Association for the past 10 years and we are thrilled to see this state-of-the-art facility come to life right here in our own backyard and host large scale tournaments like Rally in the Valley. We are passionate about having a positive impact in our community and the OWA Pickleball Complex aligns with that passion through the opportunities it will provide to Vernon residents of all ages and abilities to grow the sport of Pickleball and support healthy and active living.” Saturday August 13th also happens to be National Pickleball Day in Canada, and the tournament is a fantastic way to celebrate and spread awareness about this popular fast-growing sport. On both Saturday and Sunday, Canadian Professional Pickleball player, Steve Deakin, will be in attendance to meet players and spectators and is on board to play an exhibition match on Sunday at approximately 3:30 p.m. Spectators are welcome to come and watch the tournament all weekend. The VPA is a non-profit society and has over 850 members who play year-round, both recreationally and competitively. For more information please visit the VPA website at www.vernonpickleball.com Photos (credit Anne Longley):
Photo Left - L-R: Richard Chambers, VPA Tournament Committee Chair; Cara Arding – Owner, Pickleball Depot; Leah Peebles, Pickleball Depot; Brent Bolin, VPA Vice President Photo Right - L-R, Richard Chambers, VPA Tournament Committee Chair; Cara Arding, Owner, Pickleball Depot The second Saturday of August has been designated as National Pickleball Day in Canada, a day to celebrate and promote the sport that connects us all. For 2022, National Pickleball Day will take place on Saturday, August 13th.
National Pickleball Day isn’t only for members and affiliated clubs, just like pickleball, it’s for all! This celebration is an excellent vehicle to drive awareness of our sport and introduce the game to new players across the country. Every club can host events such as learn-to-play sessions to expose new players to the game, promoting social inclusion and health benefits, as well as demonstrating how fun and friendly the game truly is. Pickleball Canada has posted a Toolkit on their website here with details, media suggestions and hashtag #NationalPickleballDay promotions, social media picture frames, and more. One Club that has posted info on their website and organized special events for Saturday is the Vancouver Pickleball Association (info here). Also the Vernon Pickleball Association has organized "Rally in the Valley" as posted above. There are many more clubs involved in this special day, so please send us info about what you are doing across BC! Include National Pickleball Day on your club event calendar! If you already have programming scheduled for Saturday, August 13th, make sure to spread the word of the special occasion to your members and consider including National Pickleball Day promotion in the planned programming. If you don’t yet have programming planned for National Pickleball Day, consider planning learn-to-play sessions to attract new members in your communities or get your current members together for some fun matches, practices, or skills sessions to celebrate the day. The possibilities are endless! Find what works best for your club or community and keep the focus on fun and inclusivity. Here are some ideas of events you could organize in your club or community:
In Jon Wertheim's latest Sports Illustrated 'mailbag' he outlines not the negative, but the positive effects of the Pickleball craze on tennis: "Today, pickleball has overcome a name that resists serious treatment, and moved in from the fringes. There is data–in addition to media coverage and the incalculable buzz—to confirm that. To what extent has pickleball arrived? Already there are turf wars, feuding factions, Tiriac wannabes, threats of breakaway tours. Bad enough this quasi-sport is stealing tennis’ players and real estate; now it has to steal its mode of being? Joking!!" Read the full article here...
Pickleball BC - Okanagan Regional Club meeting.
On July 19th PickleballBC invited representatives of clubs from the Okanagan region to gather together to both introduce themselves to each other and discuss a number of topics of importance to the clubs. Thirty representatives from Kamloops, Salmon Arm, Shuswap Lake, Vernon, Lake Country, Kelowna, West Kelowna, Summerland, Penticton and Princeton gathered in West Kelowna for a full day of information gathering. This group of clubs represent a large number of members. Larger than several complete provincial organizations in fact. The meeting was hosted by Barry Montgomery, a former Pickleball BC board member, current chair of the Ratings Group for PCO, BC-Yukon representative on the PCO Executive and resident Pickleball Brackets expert as well as Rod Williams, PBC Vice President and Registrar. The topics discussed included the following:
It was an ambitious agenda, and we didn’t cover all the topics as completely as we may have liked, but the participants all went away more informed, and with lots of contact information of those who could help them make their clubs better for their members. It is our hope to hold more of these types of get togethers around the province and possibly schedule them on a semi regular basis if they continue to prove useful. Please see meeting summary here. Interesting and thorough (although quite long) article from Sarah Larson of the NEW YORKER about the origins of our beloved sport and it's influence on "Americans" of all stripes. Focuses on pickleball's founding on Bainbridge Island Washington State (where Governor Jay Inslee recently made pickleball the State's official sport), growth in popularity, and the two major professional tours with editorial coverage mainly in the US - but BC does get an honourable mention! Read the full article here... Illustration by Igor Bastidas
Semiahmoo Peninsula pickleball enthusiasts have a newly renovated place to play, after the City of White Rock officially opened its pickleball courts at Centennial Park last week. An official unveiling event and ribbon-cutting was held Wednesday, July 13 and featured local pickleball players – including Debbie Lawrance, president of the White Rock Pickleball Association – as well as White Rock Mayor Darryl Walker and members of city council. Read more in the Peace Arch News... White Rock Pickleball Association president Debbie Lawrance (left) and White Rock Mayor Darryl Walker cut the ribbon marking the official opening of renovated pickleball courts at Centennial Park. (Contributed photo) The game of pickleball is surging in popularity. It can be played at any age and skill level. While many might assume that pickleball is a slower, lower-impact sport, experts at Mayo Clinic say it's important to remember that injuries from playing pickleball can and do happen. "P" is for pickleball. And Mayo Clinic hand and wrist surgeon Dr. Sanj Kakar says there are four other P's that players should remember to avoid injury. Read about the four guidelines here... The Langford Westhills YMCA- YWCA has purchased Pickleball equipment for their gym and has introduced several programs for its members on a daily basis. The Centre Manager Rikki Nevins announced that the Vancouver Island Y is committed to providing shared, safe, and enjoyable program spaces. These programs are included in all Y memberships. Westhills Y – Pickeball – Starts Monday July 11. See more info here...
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