Pickleball becomes smash hit in Singapore and beyond thanks in part to Taylor Swift

In the flurry of the fast-changing fitness landscape, pickleball – a paddle sport that blends elements of tennis, badminton, and table tennis – has become the unlikely star of recreation among the younger generation in Asia, shedding its former label of being a racquet sport for seniors.

For 27-year-old Singaporean, Jeremy Soh, pickleball had started as a means to an end. He and his fiancée, Jeovanne Poernomo, 23, were on the lookout for a sport suitable for their parents when he stumbled across pickleball.

“It is marketed to be more friendly for people who are slightly older, who have mobility issues. Our parents have not exercised for 20 years so we thought this would be a great opportunity to introduce the sport to them,” he told This Week in Asia.

But what turned out as an activity for their parents quickly transformed into a passion for the couple, propelling them to travel to the likes of Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam for pickleball competitions and even setting up an academy and facility of their own – just months after they picked up their first pickleball paddle in November 2023.

“When we started to travel around to play pickleball, we noticed that the trend is opposite of what most people think about the sport. In Singapore, a lot of people think that it’s a sport for older people,” said Soh, citing how the sport has attracted players in their twenties and thirties, and in some countries, even children.

“We saw the sport is growing in the rest of Asia and we see the merit of a sport like pickleball that’s just as challenging in hand-eye coordination but not as physically taxing or difficult to learn like tennis. We see that as the driver of its growth in Asia.”

By May, the couple had set up a pickleball facility,