After celebrating her 37th birthday this year with a pickleball tournament which included her friends and loved ones, Dawn Chang shared with PUSH ABS-CBN in an exclusive interview that it was actually another celebrity who got her into the sport last year.
“A very good friend of mine, si Eric Fructoso, actually influenced me to play pickleball. So lagi sya nagyayaya. Halos araw-araw sya nagyayaya. Hanggang sa nakulitan na ako, sabi ko, ‘Sige na nga, try ko. Ano ba yan? Paano ba yan?’ (laughs) And then the first time I tried it, siyempre hindi ko alam ‘yung ginagawa ko, ‘di ba? Hindi ko alam kung sa pagpalo, sa tunog. But there's some kind of joy na mararamdaman mo pag naglalaro ka ng pickleball,” she told PUSH ABS-CBN.
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Dawn admitted that she has gotten so hooked on the sport that she plays as often as four times a week now. Which was why it became a reason for her to actually hold a celebration of her birthday this year while playing the sport she and most of her friends now enjoy.
“I never celebrate my birthday like this. Usually, simple ‘yung dinner lang at saka nag-pa-pa-massage lang ako. Alam mo ‘yung ganun? Very simple lang ‘yung celebration ng birthday ko. This is the first time that I actually celebrated it like this. Pero I want everybody to have fun. So I held a friendly tournament lang naman. And I want to also thank Ate Cora (Alcantara), our tournament director, for organizing everything. Kasi hindi ako marunong, siya talaga will do it, will hold the tournament. Ayan, ito na ‘yun,” she said.
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Aside from Eric, Dawn shared that she also enjoys pickleball with her friends in the industry like Diana Zubiri-Smith, Andy Smith, Jeffrey Santos, and Marc Solis. “It's a growing community and it's fun. Tingnan mo, wala kang mga kitang naglalaro na hindi naka-smile, unless pagod na sila. Pero enjoy, enjoy lahat ‘yan. The community is very, very nice. Majority of them, very inclusive, very nice people. So you'll enjoy it and you'll feel parang friends mo agad sila kapag naglaro ka ng pickleball. And it's fun tapos nagpapawis ka pa!” she added.
Having a background of being active almost all her life, Dawn says she easily picked up pickleball even though she has never done any racket sports before. “I'm a dance teacher. I used to be a ballerina. I used to teach dance. And obviously, I perform. Alam naman ang lahat ‘yun. But I've never had any racket sports before. Swimming lang ‘yung next love ko after dancing eh. So pickleball na ‘yung number one ko ngayon. So, yeah, definitely yes. It’s now my favorite sport,” Dawn shared.
When it comes to celebrating Valentine’s with her non-showbiz boyfriend, Atty. Ralph Calinisan, Dawn says she and the current NAPOLCOM head don’t need one special day a year to be romantic. “Every day is Valentine's Day. But mahirap mag-plan eh kasi Ralph is a public servant. Nauuna ang publiko bago ang personal na interest. So kung libre siya ng araw na ‘yun, sweet. Pero if not, pupuntahan ko siya kung saan ba siya nandoon, ganun,” she explained.