Teenagers deepen bonds through court chemistry spanning across Pacific

Shoes squeaking on the court, plastic balls popping as they hit rackets, the crowd cheering after a score — not the typical sound of international relations. Students from China and the United States were doing just that in Rockville, Maryland, on Saturday, for the inaugural U.S.-China Youth Pickleball Friendship Tournament.

The match took place at the Dill Dinkers Pickleball Club and was the centerpiece of the "New Generation of China-U.S. Friendship Ambassadors" Chinese Youth Pickleball Cultural Exchange Tour to the U.S..

A group of students from Shanghai's Luwan Senior High School, accompanied by teachers and delegation leaders, arrived in the U.S. on Feb 3 for nine days, visiting New York, Philadelphia, Washington and Maryland.

The visit builds on exchanges launched in April, when 30 students and staff from Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland traveled to Shanghai, Shenzhen and Beijing for pickleball matches and cultural programs.

On Friday, the Shanghai students toured Clarksburg High School and Hallie Wells Middle School, practiced at Dill Dinkers, visited the headquarters of sports brand Joola, and attended a reception at the Chinese embassy.

During one of the events, Zou Yan, a Grade 10 student at Luwan Senior High School, said: "I cherish this chance very much, and I have learned a lot here, including the friendships formed through playing ball. Winning or losing is not so important; friendship is more important."

Sixth grader Helen Morton, who has studied Chinese for a year, described the exchange as both enjoyable and meaningful.

"I want to go to Shanghai because the people I met talked about how great Shanghai was," she said.

He Li, principal of Luwan Senior High School, recalled a U.S. student who visited Shanghai last year and later volunteered to accompany the current delegation.

"After going to Shanghai, he fell in love with Chinese culture," she said, noting that the student downloaded language-learning apps to study Chinese and even asked her students to teach him the Shanghai dialect.

Yan Yanqiu, vice-chair of the Shanghai Magnolia Foundation for International Exchange, one of the event's co-organizers, said the reunion of students who first met in Shanghai last year was "truly touching".

"We deeply feel the warmth of friendship rooted between the Chinese and U.S. people, and it fills U.S. with confidence for the future," she said.

Both Yan and He mentioned that Jeffrey Sullivan, director of athletics at Montgomery County Public Schools, pointed to an athletic venue at the University of Maryland that hosted China's youth table tennis team for a friendship match in April 1972 during a tour the previous day.

"Now we use pickleball as a new medium to bring Chinese and U.S. youth together again. This is a continuation of friendship," Yan said."We feel more confident about future China-U.S. exchanges and youth exchanges."

Sharing laughs

Saturday opened with team-building activities planned by seven returning student "ambassadors" from Montgomery County Public Schools. Students from Shanghai and the MCPS bronze delegation -scheduled to travel to China later this week — took part in icebreakers and group challenges, sharing laughs while discussing school life, hobbies and cultural differences, including food.

In the afternoon, the tournament at Dill Dinkers began. Mixed doubles teams paired Chinese with U.S. players. Quick volleys, long rallies and baseline saves drew cheers for every point. Energy filled the indoor courts.

U.S. student Rajan Bell recalled one dramatic save. "We were down pretty bad, but after one of our saves on the far side of the court, my partner swung all the way up. That was really cool. Then we won the game."

Bell added that his Chinese partner, Michael, recommended Shanghai pork dishes and geography games during their conversations.

After the tournament, Sullivan described the competition as "amazing".

"It's been so great to see our students playing together, competing together, most importantly, forming friendships that will last a lifetime," he said. "They've laughed together, competed together, won together and lost together. All the things that you learn by participating in sport."