Davao City is set to serve up something fresh and exciting this June as the Duaw Davao Festival debuts its first-ever Pickleball Tournament, introducing the fast-rising paddle sport to athletes and enthusiasts aged 18 and above from Davao City and neighboring municipalities, provinces, and regions.
New Activities for Duaw Davao
Willenito P. Tormis Jr., CTOO Officer-in-Charge, told the City Information Office (CIO) that this year’s Duaw Dabaw Festival is rolling out fresh activities to energize the celebration, with sports as a key focus given the community’s growing enthusiasm for active lifestyles.
“For Duaw Dabaw this year, we empowered ourselves to come up with new activities, we tried our best to come up with new activities. So, one of our focuses is sports because we believe that people nowadays are really into sports. So, we will introduce a new event which is the Duaw Dabaw pickleball competition,” he said.
Registration and Requirements
All players are required to have a Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating (DUPR) account with at least 60 percent reliability at the time of registration. DUPR account names must reflect the participant’s real name or a closely related nickname, and the use of duplicate accounts to bypass skill-level restrictions is strictly prohibited.
Each division will be capped at 40 teams, with free registration beginning noon on May 17, 2026 on a first-come, first-served basis.
Competition Categories
- Low Intermediate Category – Men’s doubles, Women’s doubles and Mixed doubles with DUPR below 3.49, reserved exclusively for Davao City residents. Proof of residency through government-issued IDs or barangay certificates showing Davao City address is required.
- High Intermediate Category – Men’s doubles, Women’s doubles and Mixed doubles, open to athletes from other cities and provinces, for players with DUPR ratings of 3.5 - 3.99.
- Open Category – Men’s doubles, also open to athletes from other cities and provinces, designed for athletes with DUPR ratings of 4.0 - 4.5.
Health and Conduct
Participants must be medically and physically fit to compete, and all registrants are required to sign a waiver declaring their health condition and assumption of risk. The event underscores values of peace, respect, and sportsmanship. Any form of misconduct, including verbal abuse, harassment, or unsportsmanlike behavior may result in warnings and point penalties to outright disqualification.
Interested participants are advised to prepare the necessary documents ahead of registration, including Barangay Certificates for those joining the Low Intermediate Category, valid IDs for both players, and screenshots of their DUPR accounts. Further details on the tournament guidelines and mechanics can be found on the Duaw Davao official Facebook page.
