Israel shines at Pickleball World Cup in Fort Lauderdale

(JNS) - In its first international pickleball tournament, the Israel Open Team has already made a splash on the global stage, winning one gold and two silver medals at the recent Pickleball World Cup in Fort Lauderdale.

There were some nerves before the event, as Israel's fledgling national team wondered if it belonged among the world's best. But those doubts were quickly dispelled as the Israeli players proved their mettle in several divisions.

Team captain Adam Bachmann earned Israel's first medal, a silver, in the Over-35 Men's Singles (DUPR 4.5+). DUPR (Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating) is the fast-growing sport's international standard for ranking players.

In the U35 Mixed Doubles 4.5 category, Yaniv Semo and Adi Berman combined to win another silver. Berman then went one better, claiming Israel's first-ever international gold medal in the Over-35 Women's Singles (4.0).

The Israeli team also made headlines in the team event by upsetting defending champions Puerto Rico in a thrilling seven-game showdown that came down to a tiebreaker. Although Israel didn't advance further in the group stage, the performance earned admiration from spectators and competitors alike.

"It's one of the Cinderella stories of the tournament," national coach David Abel told JNS. "The whole experience has been completely electrifying. So many countries, so many delegations, so much support. There were only two small incidents that were anti-Israel, and so many who supported us so strongly and so beautifully."

Teams from 68 countries flew in to compete in the weeklong tournament, which ended on Sunday at The Fort, a new pickleball complex in Snyder Park near the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. Players ranged in age from 13 to senior citizens.

While pickleball is still in its infancy in Israel, the team's success at the World Cup is a sign that Pickleball Israel is heading in the right direction.