By Thomas Cherbonnel Published on April 20, 2026 at 11:44
Popular in the United States, pickleball is growing in Sarthe, thanks to Sylvie Beaufort. A tournament is scheduled for Saturday, April 25, 2026, in Coulans-sur-Gée. Former tennis player Sylvie Beaufort discovered pickleball during a three-year stint in the United States to finish her professional career. “Everyone plays pickleball down there, it’s very popular,” she says. This sport has 35 million practitioners in the USA.
A pickleball club was created in early 2025. Returning to France in October 2024, Sylvie Beaufort decided to develop this discipline in Sarthe. In January 2025, she founded the Just Pickleball association in Coulans-sur-Gée, where they live.
She started by organizing events in her town as well as in Coulaines and other locations in the department. “The characteristic of pickleball is that it is technically easy and fun,” explains the Pickleball referee in Sarthe.
This intergenerational sport is mainly played in doubles on a court the size of a badminton court, with a low net, a light racket, and a perforated plastic ball.
The club in Coulans-sur-Gée, affiliated with the French Tennis Federation since it integrated pickleball, currently has 70 members, mainly distributed between Coulans-sur-Gée and Coulaines.
Three weekly slots are available in Coulans-sur-Gée for pickleball: Tuesday night, Thursday night, and Wednesday night for a group of eight children.
A tournament will be held on Saturday, April 25 at the intermunicipal gymnasium in Coulans-sur-Gée.
Not sanctioned, this event aims to be friendly. “It’s a friendly tournament. I wanted all clubs that may not have FFT licenses to be able to play,” says Sylvie Beaufort. At least 60 players are expected to compete in the 163 matches scheduled from 9 am to 6 pm.
This tournament is also an opportunity for the public to discover this activity.
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