The Malaysia Pickleball Association wants to put a difficult few months behind it—and get back to the business of growing pickleball.
The MPA was suspended by the Sports Commissioner’s Office in late February over governance concerns, with deregistration not ruled out if requirements were not met within a specified timeframe. The association, founded in 2021, has since taken steps to address the matter and is now waiting on the Youth and Sports Ministry for a decision.
MPA president Delima Ibrahim confirmed the association formally submitted an appeal to the ministry on 30 March.
“We submitted a comprehensive appeal to the minister, Dr Taufiq Johari, including 162 pages of supporting documents to ensure full transparency,” Delima said. “We are now awaiting the ministry’s response. As a young association, we hope for a decision that is corrective and supportive rather than punitive.”
How We Got Here
The sequence of events leading to the suspension traces back to the departure of founding president Farrell Choo last year. Following his exit, Delima was appointed acting president—a move MPA said was made in consultation with the SCO, which had outlined three options: for the vice president to assume the role, for an AGM-cum-elections to be held, or for a caretaker president to be appointed.
Delima described her appointment as an interim arrangement rather than a governance deviation, with an AGM already scheduled for April this year. The interim period, she said, was designed to allow more state associations to complete their registration with the SCO, form working committees, and become eligible for MPA affiliation—ensuring that when elections were held, the new committee would include properly affiliated state representatives.
Following an internal complaint, however, the SCO directed MPA to hold a remedial AGM-cum-elections earlier than planned, on 13 March 2026. Delima was elected president during that AGM, with eligible nominees drawn from the existing committee members and representatives of affiliated state bodies.
“Without hesitation, the existing MPA committee met with Sports Commissioner Arrifin Ghani. We were told to work closely with SCO staff and follow their guidance,” Delima said.
Why This Appeal Carries High Stakes
The stakes of the suspension extend well beyond internal governance. MPA claims international recognition through affiliations with both the Asian Federation of Pickleball and the Unified World Pickleball Federation—and with pickleball increasingly in the conversation for Olympic inclusion, having an active national governing body is not optional.
“Pickleball is expanding quickly in Malaysia, and a national body is essential to guide its development, especially at the international level,” Delima said.
Since its founding, MPA has been running coaching and referee education programmes, developing standard operating procedures for competitions, introducing the sport to schools, and working on training modules alongside a national ranking system.
The association’s work sits against a backdrop of rapid growth—pickleball’s rise in Malaysia traces back to 2019, when Farrell introduced the sport at a school in Miri, Sarawak. Its popularity surged following the Covid-19 pandemic and has since established the country as one of the sport’s fastest-growing markets in the region. Both Farrell and Delima were appointed as AFP pickleball ambassadors for Malaysia in 2023.
The appeal has been filed. The documents have been submitted. Now MPA waits—hoping the ministry sees a young association that stumbled on governance, not one that should be shut down.
