Surf Coast Secondary picks up pickleball grant

SURF Coast Secondary College have used a grant from the Surf Coast Shire to get their students into the fastest-growing sport in the United States.

The college successfully applied to funding offered by the shire during Mental Health Month for a project to promote good mental health during October and used the cash to purchase three indoor pickleball nets and associated paddles.

Loosely described as being played with a slightly larger table tennis paddle over a tennis-sized net on a badminton-sized court with a hollow polymer ball, pickleball has its own set of rules distinct from those three sports.

Originating in the US in the mid-1960s, pickleball boomed during the COVID-19 pandemic and was officially declared America’s fastest-growing sport in both 2020 and 2021.

Surf Coast Secondary College health promotion nurse Mel White, who plays pickleball in Ocean Grove, was keen to bring the sport to her school.

 

“I really wanted to introduce a sport that one, is really quick to learn; two, very easy to learn; and three, doesn’t need a huge skill set, you don’t need to be playing for a long time to pick it up,” she said.

“It’s fun, it’s a fast game so you can move through [groups of] students quite quickly. Games usually last about 10 minutes, and there’s only a few rules.

“It’s also another great sport they’re going to put into the curriculum next year.

“For kids who aren’t necessarily engaged in a sport, it’s something that hopefully we can get those students on board to play; it’s quite addictive.

“Obviously, exercise and mental health go hand in hand.”

The first games were played at the college at the beginning of Term 4 and have continued since then, including in Wurdi Baierr Stadium as part of the Year 7 wellbeing day held on Monday this week.

“They’re loving it – at lunchtime now and recess, we’re getting kids coming up and saying ‘Can we play pickleball?’,” Ms White said.

“The eventual idea is hopefully we can get some funds for outdoor balls and maybe some courts built outside, so kids can play it at recess without us having to put the courts out.”