From Chasing Gangs to Chasing Pickleballs
Jill Thomas chased gangs, cartels, terrorists and child predators in California for 12 and a half years. Now she’s chasing pickleballs. In Lisbon, Portugal.
Thomas spent a life in courts before she was ever on a pickleball court. She was a federal prosecutor in Sacramento, a defense attorney, and a judge in the military. She’s an Air Force Reservist assigned to a base in Germany, where her time on duty is between 20 and 30 days a year. In early 2022, the 53-year-old native of Shelby Township, Michigan, and her wife, Jordan, moved to Lisbon. They had visited Portugal’s capital city just once before, in 2012.
“We wanted an adventure in a European capital to use as a home base for travel,” Thomas told me. “Portugal is a friendly country to foreigners, the weather [is good], it’s a city with great public transportation, the ability to walk almost anywhere in the city, and my spouse has family with Portuguese roots. We loved the old world Europe charm and the country's natural beauty with the long coastline and the architecture.”
Thomas acknowledges that the move was unorthodox. “Moving overseas with no friends, network or workplace, I wanted to find a sports community.”
She found one in pickleball. A lifelong athlete, Thomas played softball and basketball at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and her father coached several sports. Now, Thomas plays pickleball three or four times a week and drills the other days. “Simply put, I am in flow when I am playing,” she said. “Not a care in the world outside of playing and living in the moment. I also love competition and all of the new people I get to meet.
She says her DUPR (Dynamic Univeral Player Rating) is between 3.5 and 4.0 although the rating system is not regularly used in Lisbon (tournaments often place players in beginner, intermediate, and advanced divisions). She says she’s played in between eight and 10 tournaments and medaled in every one. She became a certified instructor a month ago.
Thomas says pickleball in Portugal is far less popular than in the US and she has to drive 20 minutes to the nearest courts. Many players don’t know the rules and she says she knows of only a couple 4.0 players. But she says, “Pickleball fever is spreading. The Portuguese padel and tennis players are getting interested and excited, and combined with the expat community, the sport is taking off.”
Pickleball is also gaining popularity in other southwestern Europe countries, including Italy, France, Greece and Spain. For those of you who don’t want to move overseas permanently like Jill but want to play there, several travel companies can help.
Pickleball Tours Spain offers nine-day trips with six days of play (with lessons) and three days of sightseeing. Company director and certified instructor Mike Hess says, “Pickleball is becoming widespread in Spain, though dedicated courts are still in the early stages. There are now courts and clubs in every region of Spain, many tournaments, and an increasing number of certified coaches. Spain has a great tradition in racquet sports, so combined with its sunny weather, players are increasingly migrating from the other raquet sports to pickleball.”
Pickleball Tours Spain limits its tours to 20 travelers and costs $4480 per person, not including air fare.
Another company offering overseas pickleball vacations is Pickleball Trips. Co-owner Jon Moore says the trips cost between $3000 and $4000 per person for double occupancy. The price also includes everything except air fare.
Ex-pat Jill Thomas says her eventual goal is to teach pickleball on cruise ships and at resorts. “I would love to continue to improve my game and play competitively as long as I can,” Thomas says. “I want to grow the sport in Portugal and teach others how to play and spread the love!”
From courtrooms in California to pickleball in Portugal. Thomas wanted an adventure, and she’s living it.
Thomas and Rui Temudo won gold last month in the Lisbon Open’s mixed doubles advanced division
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