The birthplace of pickleball

Every morning, locals exercising past the Cultural and Sports Center (Phan Rí Cửa town, Tuy Phong district) are curious to see a group of people playing a sport similar to tennis, but with short rackets and plastic balls.

First in the country

Upon inquiry, I learned they were playing pickleball – a new sport combining three basic sports: badminton, tennis, and table tennis. I was surprised to hear that the two outdoor courts in this town were the first pickleball venues in the country. Even more surprising was that a native of the town had brought this sport back to Vietnam, investing in free playing facilities, providing equipment, and offering technical guidance for beginners. At the end of 2018, Ms. Truong Thi Lien, a Vietnamese-American and a native of Phan Ri Cua town, introduced this novel sport to Vietnam. During a visit home, she coincidentally met Mr. Dang The Hung (born in 1982), a long-time tennis player in the area. After a pleasant conversation about sports, Mr. Hung agreed to try it and suddenly became passionately involved in the new sport. So she passed on all the techniques, rules, provided free rackets and balls, and invested in building two outdoor courts at the Phan Rí Cửa Sports Center in April 2019, hoping that the local people would have access to pickleball as soon as possible. Currently, Ms. Truong Thi Lien is a senior coach of the IPTPA (International Professional Pickleball Teaching Association), in charge of the Southeast Asia region.

Ms. Truong Thi Lien - the person who brought this sport to Phan Ri Cua town.

By 2022, the pickleball movement suddenly spread throughout provinces and cities, a rapid development unlike any other new sport. Dang The Hung shared: “Having played tennis locally for over 18 years, I easily adapted to this sport and quickly grasped the techniques. The more I played, the more captivating it became because it doesn't require excessive force; players only need patience, skill, and agility. Especially, this sport is suitable for everyone, regardless of age and gender.” Few would have guessed that pickleball, seemingly a gentle sport, can help players lose weight quickly and improve their health, even without requiring much time to learn and practice.

Ms. Lien invested in and provided two outdoor sports fields in this town free of charge.

Local badminton and tennis players gradually became aware of and switched to playing the new sport. Children in junior and senior high schools also enthusiastically participated and received formal training. From just a few initial members, the Pickleball group in Phan Rí Cửa now has 33 members. In April 2023, after a long period of training, Hung and three others in the group went to Ho Chi Minh City to participate in a training course and were certified as coaches by Mr. Seymour Rifkind - President and founder of IPTPA (International Professional Pickleball Teaching Association) - to train and coach new players. At that time, only 15 people nationwide had been granted Level I coaching certificates, and Hung was one of them.

Anh Hung is one of 15 people who have been awarded a Level I Coach certification by the International Professional Pickleball Teaching Association.

Combining travel and sports

After that, Mr. Hung became very passionate about this sport in his locality. He personally funded training and taught techniques to new members in the area, especially students. Not only that, he and other members traveled to many provinces and cities such as Da Lat, Binh Duong , Ho Chi Minh City… both to learn from experience and to spread and develop this sport, which he believes has a strange appeal! According to members who play this sport in Phan Ri Cua, pickleball is easy to practice and not difficult to develop thanks to its reasonable investment costs. The playing surface area is only 1/4 that of a tennis court, and it can be played indoors or outdoors without worrying about weather conditions.

In the last three years, pickleball has spread worldwide and has been voted the fastest-growing sport recently. In Vietnam, the sport is only just beginning to develop, but it has already attracted many players. Although it is the "cradle" of this sport, the playing group in the town has not yet established a club. Local pickleball players are waiting for guidance from the Tuy Phong District Cultural and Information Center on the procedures to establish a club, with the aim of gradually introducing the sport into schools and developing it widely in neighborhoods to help people improve their health.

The students in the town enthusiastically participated and received free rackets and professional training.

Mr. Hung further shared: “Currently, tourist areas and resorts in major provinces and cities have combined playing fields so that families and clubs can enjoy playing pickleball while traveling. This is also a way to promote tourism and destinations. Last summer, many clubs from various places came to Phan Ri Cua to exchange pickleball experiences, which was also an opportunity for them to visit, have fun, and learn about the famous local attractions. Hopefully, when this sport develops strongly, it will become a highlight that local tourist areas will pay attention to and promote, contributing to the development of tourism in our district.”

Members who play pickleball in Phan Rí Cửa are applying to establish a club.

Many clubs came to Phan Rí Cửa for both tourism and to learn about this new sport.

“Pickleball is relatively new in Vietnam and is not yet recognized as a mainstream sport. Currently, pickleball groups and clubs in provinces and cities are self-funding their participation in tournaments and trying to socialize their activities to maintain operations. We hope to receive attention from leaders at all levels, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, to expand this sport and then include it in competitions at all levels, from local to national, as an official sport…”
Mr. Dang The Hung, a pickleball coach in Phan Ri Cua town, expressed his opinion.

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