KUCHING: Kuching’s pickleball boom continued to gather pace from May 27 to 29, with nearly 200 players taking part in a three-day community event aimed at exposing local enthusiasts to higher standards of competition.
The programme, organised through a collaboration between The Podium Project (TPP) and Waddle, attracted strong participation across multiple sessions held at Star Pickleball and Pikabol Malaysia.
Organiser Emmanuel David said the event was designed to give Kuching’s growing pool of social players greater exposure to different levels of play as the sport continues to expand rapidly in the city.
“My goal for this event is mainly to expose the social players that we have in Kuching because the numbers are growing now with more courts and venues for pickleball,” he said.
He added that bringing in quality players from Peninsular Malaysia helps raise the standard of the local community while providing visiting athletes with opportunities to build their profile within the sport.
“I think it really helps our community improve their game by playing at different levels of pickleball,” he told Sarawak Tribune during the Waddle x Podium Project event powered by Friday at Star Pickleball on Wednesday (May 27).
According to Emmanuel, response exceeded expectations, with some sessions attracting close to 70 players and generating a lengthy waiting list due to limited court availability.
“We actually had a long waiting list because we could not accommodate everybody. We were only using eight courts,” he said.
Some participants were shifted to additional morning and evening sessions to cope with demand.
Emmanuel added that several local players used the sessions as preparation for the upcoming Bandar Kuching Tournament that is scheduled from May 30-31 ahead of the Gawai celebration.
“TPP collaborated with Waddle to make the event better and cater to both intermediate and advanced players,” he said.
