Pickleball is a relatively new sport, but it is rapidly gaining popularity around the world. It is a racket sport that combines elements of tennis, badminton and table tennis. It is played on a court the size of a badminton court, with a net that measures 36 inches high in the center. Pickleball can be played in singles or doubles, and is accessible to all ages and skill levels.
But its success is not without problems in New York where space is lacking…
Origin du pickleball
Pickleball was invented in the 1960s by Joel Pritchard, a US Congressman, and Bill Bell, a real estate entrepreneur. They created the sport to entertain their children on a rainy day using badminton rackets and a ping pong ball on a makeshift badminton court. The game proved to be an instant hit with their children and friends, and it quickly spread throughout the region.
The name of the game, “pickleball”, is also linked to the story of its creation. The unverified story of the name is said to come from Joel Pritchard’s dog, a Cocker Spaniel named Pickles, who liked to chase the ball. The children reportedly started calling the game “pickleball” in honor of their pet.
Pickleball Rules
Pickleball is a very simple game whose rules are:
- The serve should be made diagonally from the right service box.
- The server must hit the ball below the waist and on the opposite diagonal of the court.
- The return of serve must be made after the ball has bounced once on the court.
- Once both teams have successfully served, the ball can be hit in any direction.
- If the ball hits the net during a rally, but lands in the opposite service court, it is considered a “let” ball and must be replayed.
- A point is scored when a team commits a foul, such as hitting the ball out of bounds, hitting the ball into the net, or hitting the ball before it has bounced once on the field whose dimension is 3 4 times less than that of a tennis court.
New York’s pickleball problem
According to the online magazine Gothamist, a slingshot was led by residents of the West Village who complained about the pickleball players. Parents compared pickleball players to invaders, accusing them of forcibly evicting their children from playgrounds.
park was full of children playing basketball and football. Now they have stopped going there. They are all adults playing pickleball. It’s not a co-existence, it’s a complete and total takeover, Allan Trub, a relative from West Village.
A petition collected some 3,000 signatures leading to the banning of pickleball, including certain parks in the District, such as the Seravalli playground.
Fortunately, New York City has announced the opening of fourteen courses from April 7 to October 9 in Central Park on the Wollman Rink location while waiting for other locations to meet the growing demand for this decidedly popular sport.
