The pickleball craze is sweeping across Hong Kong, with a surge in participants and the number of private courts multiplying from just a handful last year to about 20 now.
According to Sing Tao Daily, Lai Kwong-yip, President of the Hong Kong Emerging Sports Association, said that pickleball has only become popular in Hong Kong in the past year. Its easy-to-learn nature makes it suitable for people of all ages and skill levels. With more and more participants, private venues have rapidly increased.
Sports PR professional Yau Yik-chung said that the number of private pickleball venues has skyrocketed from three in March last year to 20 now, and he estimates the number will double again this year. He noted that Hong Kong’s pickleball boom is related to celebrities playing the sport and vigorous promotion by the government, with many citizens seeing it as a parent-child activity.
Raymond Poon Chi-ming, Managing Director of Midland IC&I, said the rise of private pickleball venues is helping utilize large vacant commercial spaces in Hong Kong. Property developers are also introducing pickleball activities to boost mall foot traffic as a promotional tactic. He expects that in the next two to three years, pickleball will still be in an explosive growth phase, with more venues opening.
Vietnam has also experienced a recent pickleball boom. According to AFP, a survey indicated that Vietnam’s demand for pickleball is now second only to Malaysia among Asian countries.
However, since noise problems in many large Vietnamese cities are already severe, the sharp sound of pickleballs being hit, along with cheers and conversations from players, has made many residents who don’t play pickleball particularly annoyed.
The Vietnamese government has issued nationwide noise control regulations, especially targeting noise issues at night, but residents report that the noise from courtside commotion is often ignored.