Racketlon makes American debut

America's first Racketlon Tournament recently was held in western Nevada County, organized by a 16-year-old exchange student from Nevada Union High School.

Using four different rackets, 14 members of the Ridge Racquet Club battled in the first U.S. Racketlon Open, held Sunday in Grass Valley. Racketlon combines table tennis, badminton, squash and tennis into a single event.

"It was a great tournament," said event organizer Johannes Schubert, 16.

Schubert, whose American friends call him Joey, discovered his love for rackets as a young teen growing up in Austria. He is the reigning under-16 division Racketlon World Champion, playing mostly in Europe until recently.

"I just wanted to introduce people here in Nevada County to racketlon," Schubert said. "There were members here who challenged me."

"It's always great to have events that the members enjoy and request to do again," club owner Nick Bodley said. "Joey promised anyone who won two of the sports off of him that they could get their entry fee back. But no one did."

By the end of the tournament, Schubert sealed his world champion title, finishing first. Club members Berry Kidney took second, Dan Castles finished third and Nevada Union junior Joey Deedy was fourth.



European roots

Racketlon's history traces back more than 20 years to northern Europe.

"You can lose three of the sports, but if you keep the points close, you could win (the racketlon) with one sport," Bodley explained. "The game stops when you reach 21 points (in each sport)."

Those at the Ridge Racquet Club were not the only ones excited about participating in the nation's first-ever racketlon tournament.

"The president of the Racketlon Association called the next day after Joey had posted the announcement on his Web site," Bodley said. "He was pretty excited."

The young world champion was encouraged by the interest Sunday's tournament generated.

"It was a big success," Schubert said. "I have some more e-mails from Europe congratulating us."

"It was very cool because it got the tennis players involved with the squash players," Bodley said. "I think we will do it again. There's been a request for August."

Some saw the event as an opportunity for building community.

"It was a chance to meet some people we didn't really know before," third-place winner Dan Castles said. "We play squash, so it was a humbling experience to play sports we usually don't play. It was impressive to see what practicing all four sports gets you."

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To contact Staff Writer Lindsey Croft, e-mail lindseyc@theunion.com or call 477-4247.