Hercilio Cabieses and Miranda Cabieses, the Peruvian siblings hogged all the limelight recently in the pickleball fraternity after the South Americans successfully organised the Pickleball World Cup in the last week of October, which not only saw 32 countries and 500 pickleball athletes taking centre stage but it also garnered widespread attention for their humongous effort.
The Cabieses siblings are complete newcomers to the game and it was during the COVID-19 pandemic when the brother-sister duo transitioned to pickleball. Within a span of 3 years, they established the Cabieses Foundation in Peru to promote the game to the young people. With government support and with a host of sponsors, the Directors of the competition successfully conducted the World Cup in Peru's capital city, Lima.
Their story is no less inspiring. Pickleball Now caught up with the Peruvian duo in an exclusive interaction as Hercilio revealed that they plan to take the sport to the biggest stage of all in sports – the Olympics in 2036. He has assured all pickleball fans of something big is in store as he aims to take the sport to the top level.
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''Well, along with our partners, we have partnered with 4Global, JTA and the biggest stakeholders in the sport. So, we have created a movement and named, 'Pickleball 2036'. We are already working a lot with the leaders of every single country. During the Pickleball World Cup, we did the The Pickleball World Promoters Forum, where we gathered all the 32 delegations. So, we're able to talk about their struggles, the situation in every country and as a continent as a whole. We also talked about the infrastructure that will be implemented in the next year'', Hercilio said.
The Cabieses' don't want people to remember them for just the World Cup but as ambassadors of the game, they want to make the sport inclusive for all.
''So, we are not just a 'Pickleball World Cup'. We are big promoters and ambassador for the sport. We want to help in any way we can. I mean, of course, we're gonna gather those talents that is the next generations as well, so that we can make the sport inclusive for everyone'', he added.
He told that a lot of big developments will be coming up in the weeks to come and with the big stakeholders involved, they are very much confident to land pickleball in 12 years time at the Olympics.
''Stay tuned because there's a lot of big news coming up, in the next weeks and there's a lot of work. We are always talking to our partners. We are not alone in this journey, and I think we're gathering the biggest stakeholders in this movement. So, altogether, we we can make the Olympic movement happen. We want to be unbiased and would like to push the sport to the next level.''
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Speaking of the Indian pickleball scene, the PWR DUPR India Masters, the PWR700 event held at the Delhi Lawn Tennis Association Stadium (DLTA) from October 24-27 in New Delhi, saw a huge influx when it comes to participants and even people from different age groups showed interest in the sport.
A first of it's kind event, it was the very first international flavour, India saw for pickleball in the country. As Hercilio and Miranda are pushing it to make it an Olympic event, the top Indian picklers, who are also some of the best in Asia can dream to compete at the grandest stage of all. Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has said it a number of times that India is very keen to host the Games. Minister of Labour and Employment and also Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, Mansukh Mandaviya already confirmed that India is going to bid for the 2030 Youth Olympics but the main focus is on the 2036 Summer Games.
So, if both India and pickleball get the nod for the Olympics, the country could see a huge surge for this racquet sport.
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