SINGAPORE PICKLEBALL
PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS
Dear pickleballers and would-be pickleballers,
During the AGM in late 2022, a new 10-member team was elected to the Singapore Pickle-Ball Association board. These members come from different walks of life, age groups and pickleball experiences. Importantly, all are enthusiastic pickleball players who love the games and want to do good for the sport in Singapore.
The forming of this new committee signalled a new milestone in Singapore Pickleball. Lim Ee Kiong (currently Vice President) has done much for the sport in the last 2 years, and we want to continue the good work that he has done by expanding on our previous successes, namely in the areas of marketing, fundraising, governance and tournaments. The addition of Cecilia Kuek as the Honorary Secretary, and other committee members, have certainly helped significantly in making great strides in those areas.
​
In the last 6 months, various sub-committee and work groups were formed and these include:
-
Media and Sponsoring Sub-committee led by Darren Ho
-
Tournament Sub-committee led by Lim Ee Kiong
-
Officiating Sub-committee led by Gwee Wee Chen
-
Programming Sub-committee led by Lim Ee Kiong
We worked tirelessly to prepare and launch new initiatives. These include:
-
Website refresh and the launch of a new logo. We aim to bring more information about pickleball to the public.
-
Working closely with the sporting bodies (ActiveSG and SportSG) and People’s Association, more courts, both indoors and outdoors, are being made available for pickleball players. More sports halls and schools allow pickleball bookings and we expect more venues will be available, like the Jurong Town and Seng Kang Sports Complex outdoor courts.
-
In line with the need to be environmentally responsible, we have also launched equipment recycling efforts. The first step is to collect cracked balls and recycle the plastic to make new balls. The initial trial has been well received and will be extended to include more collection points.
-
Our yearly calendar has been published last month. Besides the usual yearly Pesta Sukan, Singapore Pickleball Open and Singapore Pickleball Novice, among others, we will launch league games soon.
-
Working closely with SportSG, our new SG Coach Technical L1 programme will be ready for launch in the next 3 months.
-
Our constitution will also be revamped, with reference to SportSG governance model.
-
Safe Sport Policy (in alignment with SG Coach programme).
-
Affiliation to international memberships has also been reviewed.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr Lim Chee Aun and Mdm Ng Eng for their past contribution to pickleball. Lim Ee Kiong has also been instrumental in helping to bring the sport to a whole new level in recent years, and he will continue to do so in the new committee.
We are all volunteers. We appreciate the dedication and hard work of our volunteers, including officials, referees, coaches, interest group leaders, and promoters. We are always looking for more people to join us in this effort to grow the sport!
Our goal is to work collaboratively and inclusively, adopting a consultative and participatory approach to our work. Our togetherness and teamwork will contribute to making pickleball a well-known and beloved sport in Singapore.
Thank you very much,
Chong Siew Tan
April 2023