Racketlon is the sport in which you play your opponent in each of the four racket-sports, table tennis, badminton, squash and tennis one after the other. You play the same number of points in each sport, giving equal weight to each sport. The rules of each sport are kept within each individual set and every point counts. The winner is the best all round racket player.

World History

You play your opponent in each of the four racket-sports, in the order of table tennis, badminton, squash and tennis. In each sport, the same scoring rules apply:

In each sport, one set to 21 points is played. Every rally results in a point to the winner of the rally (PARS). The winner of a set needs a margin of at least two points (21-20 is not possible).

After every two points, the serve goes to the other player (at the score of 20-20 or above, the serve changes every single point). In tennis, the server has two changes - first and second service - just as in normal tennis.All other aspects of the game are regulated by the rules of the individual sports.

The winner of a racketlon match is not the one that wins most sets but the one that scores the most points in total over the 4 sets. If, after 4 sets, both players have exactly the same number of points, the final tennis is extended with one single point which decides who wins the match. The winner of the lot decides who will serve, and there is no second service in the single point

Rules of Racketlon

FIR Rules of Racketlon

Racketlon tournaments have event categories for all levels, from the elite to the beginner:

Men

Class A, B(1&2), C(1&2) and D

Ladies

Class A and B

Veterans

Over 45's - All players that turn 45 during the year 2010 and older.

Over 55's - All players that turn 55 during the year 2010 and older.

Over 65's - All players that turn 65 during the year 2010 and older.

Juniors

All players that turn 21 during the year 2010 and younger.

Cadets

All players that turn 16 during the year 2010 and younger.

All players that turn 13 during the year 2010 and younger.

It is often difficult to asses how good you are, compared to others, at any of the individual racket sports. Trying to do this based on your abilities & the abilities of others is even more difficult, especially when you are a new entrant to the sport. The below section is aimed at giving you a few pointers.

Mens Class A – Elite

If you are very good in two sports, and good in the remaining two sports, you should consider Class A for your first event. This would include county players or ex-county players that have typically played a lot of racket sports and at least two sports at club level.

Mens Class B – Advanced

If you are unsure whether to enter the top category in your first event, have a go at Class B. Class B is normally full of established players who are very good at one sport, and good at a further two sports. Being near to a beginner at one sport ONLY is acceptable for this category.

Mens Class C - Amateur

Suitable for players who are good at a couple of sports and improving beginners at the others. New entrants should enter here, unless very confident about your abilities in two sports.

Mens Class D - Beginner

If you like the idea of racketlon but don't really have a lot of competitive experience, or just fancy giving it a go but are extremely rusty at all the sports, then class D may be for you.

Ladies Class A - Elite/Advanced

Accomplished racket sports players, typically playing one sport to a fairly high standard and being competitive at two others, with perhaps only one weakness.

Ladies Class B - Amateur/Beginner

More of a fun category where players new to the sport can have a taster before moving up a category.

Racketlon tournaments typically adopt a "Monrad" system of playing for your place, giving players as many matches as possible. In regional & local events the usual fomat is either an 8 player draw per class, giving players 3 matches, or a 16 player draw, giving players 4 matches.

For most UK tour tournaments, click on the 'Tournament Entry' tab & select the relevant tournament you wish to enter. If you haven't already done so, you will need to 'create an account' for this site as part of the process to register for tournaments.

NB - Players should enter only one category per event day. Those wanting to enter more than one category per day, should enter their preferred category per day & contact the tournament director, before entering a second category on any given day. This is because players entered in more than one category per day will dramatically effect the event scheduling.

Players competing domestically will gain a British Ranking, whilst players competing in any of the British World Tour events, i.e. the British Open, English Open or Scottish Open, will also gain a World Ranking. The latest British Rankings can be found on the 'Rankings' page.

There are several ways to find racketlon playing partners in your area. Currently the most comprehensive social networking database of racketlon players in the UK is the UK Racketlon Portal Facebook group, with nearly 300 active racketlon players. Worldwide, the Racketlon 'fan' page on Facebook has a similar number of members from around the world.

More recently, the ERA has entered into a commercial relationship with TotallySporty.com, which aims to help Londoners to find sports partners & has featured racketlon as a sport of the month.