It’s the sport that’s sweeping the nation, and there appears to be no slowing it down as pickleball can be seen and heard at parks all over the D.C. area.

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In order to view the video you must disable your ad blocker. How pickleball has become a mainstay in the DC region

It’s the sport that’s sweeping the nation, and there appears to be no slowing it down as pickleball can be seen and heard at parks all over the D.C. area.

Spurred by the pandemic and people seeking a socially distant activity, the paddle game played on a court smaller than a tennis court has exploded in popularity.

“Anyone can play, it doesn’t matter your age, your ability — you will have fun,” said Cori Lathan, a regular player at Capitol View-Homewood Park in Kensington, Maryland.

Jeaneen White coaches pickleball in the Takoma neighborhood of D.C. and sees it as a sport all ages can play.

“From my 13-year-old son to my 80-year-old friend, I love that it brings ages together to do something that is good for your health,” White said.

With its soaring popularity, the indoor pickleball game has become big business as well, with several facilities popping up all over the District.

“It’s social and competitive, it’s a community,” said Cristin Caine, who coaches at Dill Dinkers in North Bethesda. “I think people love that they can just show up to open plays and not have to text a million people to see if they can play, and you don’t have to worry about the weather.”

The sport that shares court space with tennis is also sharing shelf space at stores that were once tennis specific.

Tennis Topia’s owner, Marco Impeduglia, saw the change coming about two-and-a-half years ago at his Rockville, Maryland, store and quickly made the adjustments.

“Pickleball was starting to blow the tennis world out of the water, and that’s when I realized there was a lot of demand for pickleball paddles, shoes and gear,” Impeduglia said. “It’s been a big hit ever since.”

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Impeduglia doesn’t see the trend ending anytime soon.

“We are about five years into the pickleball wave and it’s been growing every day, every week, every month,” he said. “It’s just easy to find now an outdoor pickleball court, either blended line or dedicated, especially in the DMV area and it’s really easy to start playing.”

Fourteen-year-old Dylan Salzman started playing pickleball recently, but is moving up the ranks fast, capturing Montgomery County’s first ever open division championship in doubles for Northwest High School last fall.

Salzman’s goals with his newfound sport: “Maybe get recognized, possibly to go pro, because I think it’s a really good sport and I think I am not bad at it. So I think if I get a shot, I won’t waste it,” he said, in reference to Major League Pickleball, which was formed in 2021.

“Pickleball is here to stay,” Lathan said. “It’s going to be an Olympic sport, I am sure of it.”

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