Two pickleball tournaments will be held right before and during the Twin City Firecracker Festival, which is set for Friday and Saturday (June 25-26) in Festus and Crystal City.
The pickleball tournaments are set for today and Sunday, June 19-20, and Wednesday through Sunday, June 23-27, at Jokerst Memorial Park, 525 S. Mill St., in Festus.
Registration for the pickleball tournaments is closed, but spectators are invited to attend and watch the action. Attendees are urged to bring lawn chairs.
The first tourney, the AAU Midwest Pickleball Championships for juniors ages 8-18, starts at 8 a.m. both today and Sunday.
The Larry Crites Memorial Firecracker Festival Pickleball Open will begin at 6 p.m. Wednesday (June 23) at Jokerst Memorial Park and Crystal City Park, 1511 Park Drive, in Crystal City. Play on other days of the tourney, which runs through June 27, starts at 8 a.m.
The courts at Sunset Park, 816 Parkview Drive, in Festus will be used if needed, said event organizer Jim Berger, who leads the Jefferson County Pickleball League. He also is an official USA Pickleball Association ambassador for the region that stretches from St. Louis south to Sikeston, and he is the commissioner of pickleball for the Missouri Show-Me and Senior State Games.