Team Selkirk’s Enrique Ruiz Enters USA Pickleball Hall of Fame

Gresham OR

19 December, 2019

4:51 PM

Description

6-Time National Champion Recognized at 2019 USA Pickleball National Championships at Indian Wells Tennis GardenSelkirk Sport, the leading Pickleball paddle and accessories brand, today announced that Enrique “El Condor” Ruiz, one of the most accomplished professional Pickleball players of all-time, was recently inducted into the USA Pickleball Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony took place during the 2019 Margaritaville USA Pickleball National Championships at the acclaimed Indian Wells Tennis Garden, in Indian Wells, Calif. Known as “El Condor,” for his amazing ability to switch hands, and for his long wingspan which allows him to cover a lot of space on the Pickleball court, Ruiz was recognized for his dominance in the sport for past 25+ years. In addition to numerous gold medals before the current major championships, Ruiz is a 6-time National Open Champion, a national Gold Medalist in Singles, Men’s Doubles, and Mixed Doubles competitions, a 5-time champion of the international indoor championships, and a 3-time Gold Medalist in the prestigious Pickleball Tournament of Champions.Ruiz, who resides in Portland, Ore., has served as an ambassador for Selkirk Sport since 2014, and is one of the most respected ambassadors of the sport, promoting the growth and expansion throughout the Pacific Northwest.Ruiz was also the first-ever professional Pickleball player to have a signature series paddle, the Enrique Ruiz Signature Epic Graphite – 2015. Complementing his continued role with Team Selkirk, the Company has introduced the Enrique Ruiz Signature Series AMPED paddle, as part of its new and innovative AMPED Series paddle line. The AMPED Series promotes increased power, better ball control, and a larger sweetspot - the most critical benefits to maximize performance for players of all levels.Daniel Gabanek, Steve Paranto and Jennifer Lucore joined “El Condor” in the 2019 Hall of Fame Class, as all were recognized for their accomplishments on the court and their continued efforts to grow the sport.For more information on Selkirk Sport, Team Selkirk’s stable of Professional Pickleball Ambassadors and the innovative AMPED™ Series paddle line-up, visit www.selkirk.com. To follow the Company through social media, please visit Selkirk on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram @SelkirkSport.About Selkirk SportSelkirk Sport, a Made-in-the-USA Manufacturer of Pickleball paddles and accessories, is a family-owned and operated company based in Hayden, Idaho, located in the shadows of its namesake, the Selkirk mountain range. Founded in 2014, Selkirk Sport is born off a passion for sport, as well as the great western outdoor leisure lifestyle that was afforded to the Company’s founders, Rob and Mike Barnes, along with their father Jim, who is Selkirk’s production manager. Backed by the philosophy of always pushing the limits, Selkirk Sport is committed to manufacturing products that deliver the highest performance with unmatched quality and service. As part of their early success, Selkirk Sport was the very first Pickleball manufacturer to offer an unprecedented lifetime warranty on its high-performance products. And, to meet the demands of the game’s premier professionals, the Company developed low-profile edgeguards that are lightweight and extremely durable. In just three years, Selkirk Sport has become one of the industry’s fastest growing companies, and their paddles are used by many of the game’s premier players, such as Tyson McGuffin, Morgan Evans, Cammy MacGregor, Kaitlyn Christian and a host of others who are premier players and national/regional champions.About PickleballPickleball was invented by three dads in 1965 as a way to entertain their children during summer. The families resided on Bainbridge Island, Washington. Congressman Joel Pritchard, Bill Bell, and Barney McCallum fashioned handmade equipment and based the simple rules on the existing sports of tennis, badminton, and ping-pong. Unlike Tennis, Racquetball and many other sports, Pickleball has a short learning curve; you don’t need months of lessons to participate in a fun game. It also is less running compared to Tennis. However, at the same time, it can be very competitive and addicting for all ages, as well as an excellent, fun family activity. Pickleball can be played as both a singles and doubles game, and can be played inside or outdoors, on a court that uses the dimension of a doubles badminton court, along with a modified tennis net. A Pickleball court is 20’ x 44’ for both singles and doubles. The net is hung at 36” at the ends and hangs 34” in the middle. A non-volley zone – called the Kitchen - extends 7’ back from the net on each side.