Pickleball winners share South African roots

South Africans inadvertently did South Africa proud at the Maccabi Games, winning nine medals in pickleball. If you’re wondering why this wasn’t widely known, it’s because they are all expats and no longer live in or represent South Africa. 

Warren Stein, Janine Berzen, Tanya Silverman, and Martin Stein represented Team Israel in the Masters pickleball tournament, while Mandy Sacks Harnoy represented the United States. 

All of them are former tennis players and were drawn to pickleball as it uses many of the same skills, but is generally less demanding on the body, while still being highly competitive and social. 

“I’ve been playing tennis since the age of 10. I’ve been playing tennis for many years. And when I made aliya nearly 20 years ago, I found it difficult to play tennis. So I took up squash at the squash centre in Ra’anana,” said Berzen, who took the bronze medal in the Masters Women’s Singles. “I played there for quite a while. I continued playing there. One of my fellow squash players, Adam Bachman, suggested pickleball to me, and I checked it out, and I got the bug.” 

Silverman achieved gold in the Women Masters 50 Doubles, gold in the Mixed Doubles Master 50, and bronze in the Women Open Doubles. She started playing pickleball after she suffered tennis calf, finding the new sport while scrolling on Facebook. She took lessons with Lee Sieradzky, the founder and chairperson of the Israel Pickleball Association, really enjoyed it, and carried on playing. 

She explained that when the chance to represent Israel at the Maccabi Games came, she knew she couldn’t pass it up, especially considering she hadn’t known about the Maccabiah as a youngster. 

“I was incredibly grateful to represent Israel at my age. Wearing the Star of David was a real honour. I even wore Star of David socks with matching shoes because I was so proud to represent the country. The support from the crowd was amazing, and seeing so many people cheering for Israel was overwhelming. It was a fantastic experience, although I was definitely nervous,” she said. 

Similarly, Martin Stein, who started playing pickleball only a few months ago and won gold in the Men’s Masters 50 Doubles, says representing his home of 36 years is something he will never forget. 

“Wearing the Israeli colours at the Maccabiah carried a sense of responsibility as well as pride,” he said. “Even though there were quite a few South African olim, everyone was passionate about representing Israel. There was plenty of English spoken, a shared sense of humour, and a real camaraderie, but at the same time, everyone was united by the goal of competing for Israel.” 

Warren Stein, who won bronze in the Masters men’s singles and silver in the Mixed Doubles Masters, explained that playing pickleball is a great way to meet people, to keep fit at 51, and to play a racquet sport, which comes very naturally to him as a tennis player. 

He also represented Israel at the pickleball world championships in Florida, United States last year. To him, representing Israel means everything, but he always has a slice of South Africa, too, as he takes biltong to his games and gives some to his fellow players to keep up their stamina. This builds a large community of fellow expats. 

“We’re all still learning this new sport and trying to master it. One of the great things about pickleball is that age doesn’t really matter. If you have good touch and feel for the ball, you can compete,” he said. “The South Africans have created a great atmosphere, and it’s always special to meet fellow South Africans anywhere in the world, especially here in Israel. I’m also known for bringing the biltong, so whenever someone asks, I make sure the South Africans are well supplied. It’s been an amazing experience.” 

Sacks Harnoy won silver medals in the Women Masters Doubles and the Women Masters 50 Singles and a bronze in the Mixed Doubles Masters, the most of any pickleball player in the United States team. She said playing in the Maccabi Games was a once-in-a lifetime experience, and being able to represent her home of nearly 40 years at the age of 60 was special to her. 

“I put in so much hard work to get here. I’m 60, and it’s just the most incredible feeling to still have this unbelievable passion for something at this stage of my life,” she said. “I just got a thrill competing and representing the United States, and it was really a very big deal.” 

Silverman described standing on the winning podium, surrounded by many other South Africans, as “having a little bit of your home away from home with you as you’re playing”. 

“We’ve all taken different paths, but it all started back in South Africa. That was like just a lovely common bond for all of us,” said Sacks Harnoy.