Volunteer Fabian Haut was recognised for his contribution to racquet sports recently when he was nominated for the lifetime commitment prize at the Dundee Sports Awards.
But he almost didn’t find out about it at all…
“I’m not the greatest at checking emails other than the work ones, so ignored a number of emails from Active Dundee until a community sport hub officer from Dundee Council – who knew me because they used to sit on a committee with me – contacted me directly saying, ‘Fabian, check your emails!'” he told Pickleball 52.
In part, the nomination recognised his work leading social pickleball sessions in the area and coaching with the Dundee Deuces, an LBGTQIA+ racquet sports club founded by his friend Wesley Rennison.
“We reach people who never have done any sports. The sessions can be quite challenging as it is a real mix of folk and there may be at any given time some new people who never tried to hit any kind of ball with a racquet or paddle before and there might also be people who are quite proficient. So this is a bit of a challenge. Also the concept of ‘Game On’, learning through playing and having fun is in my view very important and getting the balance of letting folk just have some fun combining it with tactics, mainly positioning, and drills can be vexing.
“I absolutely love the people attending and see them grow and develop both in a sporting and dare I say personal level. It is a total privilege!”
Fabian loves the community aspect of pickleball and its genuinely inclusive ethos – pointing to his wife, who plays pickleball with him despite never having played racquet sports before.
Indeed, Fabian himself only began playing two years ago, quickly qualifying as a Pickleball Scotland ambassador and then coach. He had played tennis for years but after an injury has returned to court with pickleball only, playing four times a week.
“I like the exercise, the speed and the social aspect of it,” he says. “I love that I am able to play with my family.”
