The Jurong Spring Pickleball Challenge 2022 held on January 15 was a memorable day for all the attendees. This event is supported by HDB Lively Places Programme, organized by Pickleball.sg in collaboration with Jurong Spring Zone A RC/PA and Jurong-Clementi Town Council.
A big thank you for the support from our government agencies and Jurong Spring Pickleball interest group for this successful neighborhood event. It was a combination of family day for parent/kids, a sporting clinic, as well as an opportunity for our Jurong Spring residents to get to know each other better. It was so encouraging to see that more than 70 percent of participants are residents of the estate.
Blessed with blue skies, birds chirping amongst the estate's vegetable gardens, this event at Jurong West St 52 blocks 517E, 521, and 523 badminton courts were fully subscribed by 32 pairs of parent/child teams who registered for this pickleball clinic and a mini challenge.
Under the current SMM guidelines, the clinic/mini challenge was divided into four sessions, spreading over four courts, with no more than four participants, and a coach on each court.
Much pre-event preparations and organizations were needed for its success. To see all the happy faces and big smiles on the kids and many appreciative messages after the event from the parents make all the work all the more worthwhile. A big thank you to all the well-wishers and for your encouragement and kind words.
Many of the participants were first timers to pickleball. Some of the kids were very competitive and keen to learn the game. A real bunch of pocket dynamos with good potential whose ages ranged from 7 to 17 years.
Four qualified coaches and four coaching assistants were on hand to guide the participants. This takes dedication, passion, and much patience, as teaching beginners is not an easy task. They were there since 3pm under the sunshine till 9pm cooling moonlight.
These coaches, apart from teaching the attendees on how to play, also emphasized that pickleball was created to be a fun, competitive, and highly social sport. Since its inception, it has embodied an ethic of good sportsmanship that includes respect, fair play, and graciousness in winning and losing. The aim of this event is to encourage behaviors that reflect these foundational values.
Another notable activity was the quiz session. The kids just love it when they are challenge with questions related to pickleball and how to maintain a harmonize neighborhood. All kids gave the correct answer and was rewarded with 2 packs of sweet treats. You can see their excitement digging into the big bag of treats finding their favorite marshmallow, fruit gums, jelly babies and more….
"No man is an island"; the organizers extend their heartfelt thanks to the many volunteers who "walked the talk", in helping out in whichever way they could on the day. The organizers were particularly proud of the effort put in by Jurong Spring residents to showcase their estate and for their warm hospitality:
the estate's mini mart owner, with his sponsorship of 4 cartons of 100+ sport drinks.
the efficient and "no nonsense" ladies manning the ART station. Making sure that "if you fail, you go straight home"...not negotiable.
the venue set up team, walking around with brooms and electric blowers, making sure the four courts are safe to play for our kids.
many photographers in capturing the memorable moments.
the clean-up team, ensuring the estate grounds are left clean and tidy after the event, as part of the good responsible neighborhood behavior towards each other.
To make the event complete, the organizers thank Mr. Shawn Huang, Advisor to Jurong Spring, who took an interest and came around to talk to the organizers and participants.
We also like to extend a big shout out to Serene, the HDB HQ representative, stay throughout the event, interviewing and seeking feedback from the participants. As well as Singapore Pickleball Association (SPA) for marking out the pickleball court lines prior to the event. Not to mention the many ardent supporters who we had to remind to stay their distance from the courts due to SMM directives.
Stay safe and stay happy. We hope to see you again next time.
Author - John Ng
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