The Da Nang Pickleball Federation team recently had a successful competition, earning an impressive 18 medals at the 2025 National Club Pickleball Championship. This achievement serves as a further motivation for athletes to continue training and competing, while also helping to promote the Pickleball movement in the city.

The growing movement is the basis for Da Nang to develop Pickleball into a high-performance sport. Photo: PHI NONG

The 2025 National Club Pickleball Championship was organised in Bac Giang Province by the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Bac Giang Province in collaboration with the Viet Nam Sports and Physical Training Department under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. Nearly 700 athletes and coaches from 40 provinces and cities across the country participated in the event.

The participating athletes competed in 5 events including men's singles, women's singles, men's doubles, women's doubles and mixed doubles; and in the amateur and professional categories. They were divided into three age groups: under 35 years old, from 35 to 45 years old, and 46 years old and above.

The Da Nang Pickleball Federation team had 26 athletes participating who were selected from strong domestic and international clubs citywide.

With the participation of many excellent athletes, the competitions at the tournament were exciting, attractive, and of high professional quality.

In the amateur category, the Bac Giang team won 7 gold medals in the events of women's singles and women's doubles under 35 years old; women's singles, women's doubles, men's doubles and mixed doubles from 35 to 45 years old; and women's doubles over 46 years old.

It was followed by Da Nang with 2 gold medals in men's singles and men's doubles over 46 years old. In addition, the city's athletes took a silver medal in men's doubles over 45 years old; a silver medal in women's doubles, a bronze medal in women's doubles from 35 to 45 years old; and a bronze medal in women's doubles, and a bronze medal in mixed doubles under 35 years old.

In the professional category, Da Nang was the most outstanding unit when showing superiority with impressive achievements in most events, affirming its position as one of the leading units in terms of expertise in the national Pickleball competition system.

In the under 35 age group, the city's pickleball players almost "dominated" the gold medal table. Pickleball player Lazaro Leander won the gold medal in men's singles, while Lim Sarah Jane was crowned in professional women's singles. This duo continued to show excellent performance when competing together and winning the gold medal in professional mixed doubles.

Also in this group, two athletes Le Xuan Duc and Mayur Narayan brought home another gold medal in men's doubles. In addition, Da Nang’s players grabbed 3 silver medals and 4 bronze medals.

Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Culture and Sports cum Vice President of the Da Nang Pickleball Federation Nguyen Trong Thao said that the 2025 National Club Pickleball Championship was the first national tournament the city’s Pickleball Federation had participated in since its establishment. The valuable medals are the result of the efforts of athletes and coaches in training and competing, as well as the great motivation for local athletes to continue to strive and compete for good results in the following tournaments.

In the short time, Pickleball has become an attractive sport for people of all ages, contributing to enriching the physical education and sports movement in the city. Recently, many Pickleball clubs, and training centres, have been established in the city to meet the needs of players. The municipal People's Committee has just issued an official dispatch agreeing with the proposal of the Department of Culture and Sports on adding Pickleball into a list of high-performance sports.

Mr. Tran Do Quang, Deputy Director in charge of the Da Nang Sports and Gymnastics Athletes Coaching and Training Centre highlighted that the addition of Pickleball into a list of high-performance sports will open up a new development stage for this types of sports in Da Nang, as well as contribute to diversifying high-performance sports, and improving the local sports sector's achievements in domestic and international arenas.

The establishment of a high-performance Pickleball team is a trend that domestic and international units and localities have carried out. The Centre will organise the selection and screening of talented athletes with passion for the city's Pickleball team. Athletes with excellent achievements in grassroots tournaments, if meeting the requirements, can be selected as the initial core. In the long term, the centre will select talented young athletes for systematic training like other high-performance sports, he noted.

According to Mr. Nguyen Trong Thao, Da Nang has a significant advantage in developing Pickleball as a high-performance sport due to the robust growth of the sport in the city. The local government actively encourages and provides favourable conditions for organisations and individuals to establish and develop Pickleball clubs that can operate and compete systematically and professionally.

In the coming time, the goal is to make Da Nang one of the leading centres for Pickleball development in Viet Nam and the region. The city aims to elevate Pickleball as one of its signature sports, fostering community connections and enhancing the growth of the local tourism industry.

Efforts will be made to promote Pickleball among all age groups, with a particular emphasis on engaging pupils at all educational levels. Additionally, there will be initiatives to identify and train young talents, establishing a foundation for future professional athletes in Pickleball.

Reporting by PHI NONG - Translating by M.DUNG