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PICKLEBALL IN GOOD HANDS

July 9, 2023
​Ref: Red Dumuk (0967.307.9055)


​The fledgling “Philippine Pickleball Federation” continues to be in good hands even as President Michael Johnson and Treasurer Armando Tantoco assume new roles in PPF with their election as Chairman and President last July 8, at the 2023 Annual General Meeting.

Elected with them to serve as members of the board of trustees, established in 2019 as the “Philippine Pickleball Sports Association”, were: Giselle Cabrera, Gigi Maceda, Jeffrey Kho, Edgardo Mendoza, Federico Costales, Raffy Malanyaon and Jonathan Jover. The incoming treasurer is Coni Ibañez and newly elected secretary general Red Dumuk.

Johnson, a world pickleball ambassador, and formerly co-chair of the the international pickleball rules committee also served as founding member and Secretary General of the Asia Federation of Pickleball (AFP) and Secretary of the International Federation of Pickleball (IFP). He continues to work with the newly formed International Pickleball Action Committee (IPAC) to unify the sport internationally.

Tantoco, a licensed architect and former Membership Director of the PPF, has served in a number of capacities in both the United Architects of the Philippines and the Jaycees.  Johnson, Tantoco, Cabrera, Kho, Mendoza and Costales are all Certified Pickleball Instructors while Maceda is a level 2, USA Pickleball certified referee and referee trainer.

Recognized in 2020 as the national sports association (NSA) for the Philippines, PPF along with Singapore Pickleball Association, All-India Pickleball Association, Chinese-Taipei Pickleball Association, and Japan Pickleball Association jointly founded the Singapore based, Asia Federation of Pickleball (AFP).

Johnson and Tantoco chorused, “We have high hopes that the 2025 Southeast Asian Games to be hosted by Thailand will see Pickleball as one of the sports to be contested. This early we need to prepare for that opportunity.”

Last March 2023, Thailand hosted the Asia Pickleball Open where Team Philippines picked up seven gold, seven silver and seven bronze medals. Remaining regional tournaments for 2023 include the World Pickleball Championships in Bali, Indonesia, September 19-24 and the Asia Pickleball Games in Taichung, Taiwan October 6-9