Pickleball enthusiasts do not budge: the practice of this sport is the perfect solution to keep in shape and ward off the depression and anxiety linked to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The sport of racket, which combines elements of tennis, badminton and table tennis, continues to gain popularity in New Brunswick, as it does across the country.
In Pointe-Verte, about sixty followers of the discipline meet twice a week to play doubles matches in a good mood.
Intergenerational sport seems to have become over the years the preferred physical activity of retirees.
For many, pickleball, an infallible recipe for keeping fit and warding off the blues of COVID-19 (Acadie Nouvelle -Sébastien Lachance)
A recent visit from l’Acadie Nouvelle to the La Barque center revealed an enthusiasm for the practice of this sport.
Some do not hesitate to drive the distance between Bathurst and Pointe-Verte (around thirty kilometers) in order to indulge in their favorite sport.
It must be said that pickleball is a sport accessible to everyone, inexpensive and which is not too hard on the joints of the body, even for the elderly.
In fact, the Pointe-Verte club has among its members people who have reached the age of 75 and 76 and who give their all on the courts.
Alain Thériault was far from being a great sportsman before discovering pickleball five years ago.
“It made me want to do activities and play other sports, like cycling. In addition, I would say that it gave me a good dose of confidence and self-esteem, ”said the retiree from Petit-Rocher.
“There is also a social side that we find here. We made lifelong friends. ”
An opinion which is shared by his wife, also a follower of the sport.
“Pickleball helps you stay healthy and avoid boredom at home,” said Rolande Thériault during a brief break from play.
The activity manager, Suzanne Frenette, goes even further.
“Some went so far as to tell me that pickleball had practically saved their lives, when morale and health were on the ground last winter due to COVID-19 and there was not much – something to do every day. “
The organizer said she was delighted to have given a taste for physical activity to some people who had never practiced sport in their life.
“To see all the fun, good humor and laughter that there is on the field is my greatest reward,” said Ms. Frenette.
She says that a member of the group, victim of a nasty fall from several meters at home, regained his motor skills in part thanks to the practice of pickleball after his convalescence.
Pickleball was invented by an American retiree in the 1960s. Legend has it that not knowing what to call the sport, he named it after his dog Pickle.
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