‘We Fought for Every Ball and Came Out Victorious’

On October 18–19, 2025, the first international Russian Tennis Federation Pickleball Cup took place at the Salyut Geraklion sports complex in Moscow. The tournament brought together 117 athletes from six countries—China, Belarus, Turkey, Israel, Vietnam, and Russia—including two representatives of HSE University, who together won three medals.

By the end of the competition, Nikolay Chernyshov, second-year master’s student on the International Sports Management, Marketing, and Law programme at the HSE Higher School of Law and Administration and founder of the club PROpickleball.ru, had earned two bronze medals—in the men’s doubles and mixed doubles events. He also ran a pickleball masterclass during the tournament.

‘For me, taking part in the Russian Tennis Federation Pickleball Cup was an important milestone—not only as a player, but also as an organiser and as a representative of HSE University,’ said Nikolay Chernyshov. ‘It was wonderful to see how pickleball brings people from all over the world together: we had players from China, Turkey, Israel, Belarus, Vietnam, and Russia. I am proud that PROpickleball.ru was able to contribute to the event—we helped with communication with international participants, processed results through our Playon.social platform, and published them in the international DUPR rating system. We also ran a masterclass and a mini-tournament for groups of journalists. I am sure this is only the beginning—pickleball in Russia, and at HSE in particular, will continue to grow rapidly in the years to come.’

Olga Voron, Adviser at the HSE Institute for Social Policy, won silver in the mixed doubles. ‘It was an incredible experience. I still cannot quite believe my success—having taken up pickleball just over a year ago, I managed to win silver in the mixed doubles at an international tournament. My Chinese partner (who flew to Moscow specially for the event) and I fought for every ball and came out victorious. It was a true celebration. I believe pickleball is a unique sport that anyone can take up at any age and achieve real success,’ she said.

Sergey Fedorovtsev, Director of the HSE Sports Community Support Centre, also attended the Pickleball Cup. He shared his impressions of the event and his first experience playing the sport: ‘Last weekend, at the invitation of my colleague from HSE, Olga Voron, I dropped by the international pickleball tournament organised by the Russian Tennis Federation. I have to say, this sport was completely new to me. Master’s student Nikolay Chernyshov explained the rules and gave me a quick masterclass, after which I happily played a couple of matches. Pickleball is fascinating in its simplicity, excitement, energy, and accessibility. I really enjoyed playing, and I am sure most people who try it will feel the same. I was also delighted by the success of HSE representatives at this tournament.’