Centre Wellington pickleball pair earns spot in Canada games

KITCHENER – Centre Wellington residents Bryce Richardson and Tim Porter are heading to the 2024 summer games – the Canada 55+ Summer Games that is.

“We’re still in shock,” Richardson said of learning that he and his pickleball partner had qualified for the national competition.

He and Porter competed in the Ontario Senior Games Association’s 65+ men’s doubles pickleball tournament in Kitchener on April 16, placing silver and earning them a berth in the Canada-wide competition.

The Canada 55+ Games is a biennial event, taking place this year from Aug. 27 to 30 in Quebec City.

Approximately 2,500 participants from across the country are expected to attend, competing in events that range from track and field, floor shuffleboard and golf to table tennis, slo-pitch, swimming and more.

Porter and Richardson will be focused on one event – pickleball – a sport Richardson said they took up because it’s easier than tennis.

“We’re originally tennis players,” he said, noting he has a court in his backyard and still plays that sport, too.

Richardson took up pickleball seven years ago, and Porter has been playing for about two years, he said.

“It’s the fastest growing sport in North America, so there’s nothing hotter these days,” said Richardson.

The popularity of the sport means competition for space to play can be fierce, but luckily Richardson can practise in his own backyard.

He said he expects the national tournament to be as competitive as it gets, but he and his partner are “as good as anybody.”

In preparation, they will continue to practise, do their best to stay healthy, and generally “keep doing what we’re doing,” he said.