Last week was an exciting early milestone in my freelance writing career. The National Post published my first long-form feature since returning to journalism — and, as you’ll learn below, the topic was actually kind of perfect for me.
It was an in-depth story on the rivalry between tennis and pickleball, examining the history of the sports, the strategies of each, and what draws certain people to a particular one (or both). I also tried to reconcile with the tension that exists between tennis and pickleball, why it exists and why the people who play both think it’s time for a peace settlement.
You can read the piece online here:
Anyone who knows me knows that I love tennis. I’ve watched ever since I was a kid. I remember spending the early days of summer vacation in front of my TV watching Wimbledon. In adulthood, I’ve maintained my interest in the sport, and while I don’t play as much as I’d like to, I still watch as much as I can — especially the majors.
I have less personal experience with pickleball. Obviously, it’s a newer sport (insert blatant article plug to click on the link above to learn about the origins of pickleball), but I actually want to humblebrag here about my journalistic instinct and sniffing out a trend early on. Because I actually wrote a story about pickleball while in journalism school, more than a decade ago.
I can’t remember the particulars about the assignment, but it was something along the lines of, go out in the community, find a local story and file about it. I found a community centre that hosted recreational pickleball and went down there to interview the people playing. I miraculously found said story by digging through old emails (this is why I never delete emails). The gist of the piece was that pickleball was a niche interest for older people, but that people playing it were convinced it was a sport on the rise, so I’m taking the win on calling that one, because pickleball is now played by millions across North America. Also, I did hear later on that after I graduated, my journalism school teacher used my pickleball story as an example to show future students, so I’ll take the win on that one, too.
OK, one last nostalgic note. I worked at the National Post from 2014 to 2016. My role there, web producer for the sports section, was my first full-time, non-intern job in journalism. It was a fantastic place to start my career, mostly because my colleagues were amazing and many remain my dear friends today. My time there sadly ended abruptly because of layoffs (unfortunately, a common way for journalism gigs to end), but seeing my byline in the Weekend Post had me thinking back and reflecting on that first job. I sincerely think that I owe a lot to my career as a writer and journalist to the support and encouragement I received early on from my editors and colleagues in the Post sports department. We were a small section that loved to punch above our weight and find unique angles no one else had. I’ve carried that mentality ever since.
Finally, on another topic, I had the great pleasure of joining my friend Blake Murphy on Jays Talk + on Sportsnet 590 The Fan this week. I was a regular on the show when I was on the Blue Jays beat, but this was my first time back on air with Blake since returning to journalism. If you want to hear our full conversation, which featured a brief, spoiler-free chat about the finale of Survivor 50, you can find the episode here.
Until next time, thanks for reading!