Tina Pisnik

Hailing from Maribor, Slovenia, Tina Pisnik’s affinity for racket sports comes from a strong professional tennis background. She reached career high rankings of No. 29 in singles and No. 63 in doubles on the WTA Tour and also represented Slovenia twice at the Olympics, competing at the 2000 and 2004 Games in Sydney and Athens, respectively. Injuries sustained from a car accident forced Pisnik to retire from professional competition after seven years. She still coached tennis in Slovenia, however, and in 2015 she moved to Chicago with her wife Maja to continue coaching. The pair moved to central Florida in 2021, where they currently reside.

Pisnik first discovered pickleball in 2022 when a friend invited her to play. Like many tennis players and newcomers to the sport, she was hesitant. But once she saw the competition that the sport would allow her to re-experience, she dedicated herself to it. Pisnik is piling up the accolades in her first year competing on the pro pickleball circuit. She earned a silver medal at the Vulcan Tournament of champions in mixed doubles and then a gold medal in mixed doubles at APP Chicago a few weeks later. She also competes at the Challenger Level of Major League Pickleball as a member of the California BLQK Bears.

When she’s not playing pickleball, Pisnik still coaches tennis and enjoys spending time with her and Maja’s two kids, English Labradors named Sam and Ash. She is sponsored by Chicken N Pickle and Stack Athletics.