The African Games in Accra (AKA, the All Africa Games) have already brought forth many incredible sporting surprises, wins, and updates that South Africans back home have had the joy of rooting for and relishing in.
A recent addition to the list of accomplishments come from being in a good kind of pickle after South Africa’s pickleball squads made their debut at the All African Games.
While pickleball is considered a demonstration sport, hopes are high that it will soon become a full sporting code with a chance at earning Olympic participation eventually.
South Africa was represented by two of our top male and female players, Marko Stavrou, Costas Martinis, Lynette Whelpton and Bianca Auret.
The women’s team took silver in the ladies’ double and Bianca earned bronze for the singles competition!
Considering that pickleball has transformed from only having one club in 2020 to having 40 sites across South Africa, the exciting part about the recent proud moments are that we might all have a new and very inclusive sport (pickleball is for all ages) to root for in competitive spaces.
“Pickleball really is a game for everyone,” Allon Rock of Pickleball SA shares. “It’s a great racquet sport for all ages. Both the paddle and ball are light and the court is smaller than a standard tennis court, so players develop speed and agility without incurring any serious stress and contact injuries like the ones we are seeing in padel players,” Allon adds.
The debut at the All Africa Games means that the budding sport is hopefully on the path to official recognition.
Meanwhile in other exciting news from the All Africa Games, South Africa has welcomed scores of medal thus far, with a total of 93 medals on Sunday. Our men’s cricket side welcomed a victory in their opening match, and as the competition beats on, speculations are that we might just have another gold to welcome from our cricket players soon!
Source: www.goodthingsguy.com
