Dino Jimenez, Anna Clarice Patrimonio Shine at WPC Asia Grand Slam in China
The Philippines is slowly but surely becoming a powerhouse nation in pickleball—and proof of it is the seven-medal haul of Team Pilipinas in the recently concluded World Pickleball Championships (WPC) Asia Grand Slam in China.
In all, Filipino picklers brought home one gold, one silver, and five bronze medals from the prestigious tournament, which drew over 800 talented players from 20 countries—including pickleball hotbeds like Vietnam and Malaysia.
Dino Jimenez Leads Seven-Medal Haul
Leading the way for Team Philippines was Dino Jimenez, who secured three medals—a gold, three bronze—total in tournament. Jimenez, a former top junior tennis player in the Philippines, teamed up with Davis Alano to bag the gold in the 35+ men’s doubles Open category in the first leg held in Hebei City. He then snared bronze in the 35+ men’s singles Open, before teaming up again with Alana to secure the bronze medal in the 35+ men’s doubles Open category in the second leg in Baoding City.
“It’s always an honour to win for the country. I’m happy that I was able to perform well,” Jimenez said in an interview with the media on Saturday. He only began playing competitive pickleball in November but got a silver just four months later at the Pattaya Open in Thailand in March.
Alano, on the other hand, added a bronze medal in the 19+ men’s doubles with Kim Ivor Saraza. He later admitted that his two-medal haul came as a surprise, largely because he suffered a torn calf injury two weeks before going to China.
“I was really excited to play in China. It was my first time to compete in the 35+ category. But I did not expect anything because of the injury. We really helped each other to win our first gold medal,” Alano said.
Anna Clarice Patrimonio Continues to Shine
Anna Clarice Patrimonio, who has already won gold medals at the 2025 World Pickleball Championship in Vietnam and WPC Asia Pickleball Open, added to her pickleball feats by winning the silver medal in the 19+ women’s singles Open. Like Jimenez, Patrimonio started out as a tennis player and only turned to pickleball fairly recently.
Medene Ramos-Saraza and Patricia Raymundo gave the Philippines another bronze in the 19+ women’s doubles category.
The Philippine team made up of Jimenez, Alano, Saraza, Ramos-Saraza, Patrimonio, Ken Unique Dela Cruz, and Christian Joshua Luna bagged the bronze medal in the team event.
