Japan Pickleball Association, Pickleball Japan Federation Complete Merger

MartinApril 24, 2026

Japanese pickleball just got a cleaner structure—and a clearer path forward.

The Japan Pickleball Association (JPA) and the Pickleball Japan Federation (PJF) have formally merged to create a single national governing body for the sport. The merger agreement was signed on 13 March 2026, took official effect on 14 April 2026, and will operate under the unified external name Pickleball Japan. The new structure was publicly announced on 10 April 2026, or a little under three months since plans of the merger were announced in January of this year.

The timing is not coincidental. With pickleball’s global profile rising—and with Olympic inclusion increasingly a genuine conversation rather than a distant aspiration—having two separate governing bodies in the same country is a structural liability that both organisations recognised needed to be addressed. The merger removes that friction.

How It Will Be Run

Pickleball Japan operates under a newly established governance structure agreed upon by both organisations on equal terms. Rika Riordan serves as Chairperson, with Shigeru Nishigami as Vice Chairperson and Gaku Koizumi as Secretary General. The Executive Directors are Kento Sasaki, Koki Sugimoto, Yuki Tanaka, Chiharu Hachiya Lorenzoni, and Masahiro Marutani.

The new logo — built on the existing PJF design but incorporating the colours of the JPA—is a deliberate visual symbol of integration rather than one organisation absorbing the other. Both sides are present in it.

What Pickleball Japan Is Building Towards

The unified body’s core statement is straightforward: pickleball—the sport that connects people. The mission behind it is to use the sport to build community, support healthy lives, and make participation accessible regardless of age, gender, experience, or background.

Beyond the community dimension, Pickleball Japan is also explicitly building towards competitive excellence—strengthening national tournaments, developing athlete pathways, expanding collaboration with international federations, and growing regional grassroots activity simultaneously. The five values underpinning the organisation—inclusiveness, connection, fun and well-being, fair play, and excellence—reflect an intent to balance the sport’s social accessibility with genuine competitive ambition.

With international competitions and potential Olympic inclusion both on the horizon, the merger creates the kind of unified structure that international federations and Olympic bodies expect to see from a national governing body. A sport with two competing organisations speaking in different directions is a sport that struggles to be taken seriously at the global level. Pickleball Japan removes that problem.

All competitions and certification systems planned for the 2026 financial year will continue under the new structure, with existing plans respected during the transition.

The Bigger Picture

Japan already has one of the strongest sporting cultures in Asia, with deep roots in racquet sports — table tennis and badminton in particular—that make its player base naturally receptive to pickleball’s format. A unified national body, properly governed and internationally connected, gives the sport the infrastructure it needs to convert that potential into results.

One governing body. One voice. One direction.

Japanese pickleball is entering a new stage—and it has the structure to match the ambition.