Babolat Signs First Pickleball Athlete

French company Babolat announced Thursday on their Instagram account that professional pickleball player Chris Haworth has signed on as their first-ever pickleball athlete. 

From the post:

@babolatpickleball is thrilled to announce the signing of @chrishaworth.pb as Babolat’s first pickleball athlete.

As we officially enter the world of professional pickleball, we are excited to bring our rich racquet sports history to a new sport, and to work with a player whose passion for @Babolat started long before pickleball.

We couldn’t be happier to be partnering with Chris and look forward to growing with him just as we have with our other Babolat athletes.

Welcome to the #BabolatFamily Chris!

This is an historic addition for such a well-known brand in the racquet space. Babolat has long sponsored some of the top tennis players, including the great Rafael Nadal and current No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz. They entered the pickleball scene back in 2021 with the launch of BPKL, the company's pickleball brand.

The company's footwear is also becoming the dominant brand on the professional pickleball scene, with 40 percent of the top 10 PPA men's and women's doubles players wearing Babolats in competition, despite not having an endorsement deal with the company.

Chris Haworth has been rising through the ranks of men’s singles over the last year. His most notable victory came against Ben Johns during the USAP Nationals in November, where he took the bronze.