D-Joy Signs Strategic Cooperation With Beijing Sport University
Andrew LeeD-Joy, the Ho Chi Minh City pickleball ecosystem behind the D-Joy Pickleball Tour, signed a strategic cooperation with Beijing Sport University in Beijing on 22 Sep 2026. It also launched a separate cooperation with the university's subsidiary, Beijing BSU Education Technology Development Co., Ltd.
D-Joy chairman Dang Quang Anh signed the cooperation memorandum with Liu Xiaowei, who represented the university. D-Joy lists six areas the two sides plan to work on: training, athlete development, sports human resources, competition organization, technology application and competition venue systems.
A Partner With a 1953 Pedigree
Beijing Sport University was founded in 1953 and sits under China's General Administration of Sport. It belongs to the country's Project 211 and Double First-Class programs, and D-Joy's announcement credits it with training more than 130,000 sports professionals, coaches and athletes, Olympic and world champions among them.
The announcement also cites a cooperation network of 164 higher education institutions and 20 international sports organizations across more than 50 countries, and notes that the campus is home to the Chinese Olympic Academy. On campus, Champion Road displays the footprints and names of Olympic and world champions who studied or taught there.
What the Announcement Does Not Say
The announcement stays at the level of intent. It names no court, tournament date or training venue in China, and it says nothing about funding or exclusivity. Dang Quang Anh framed the deal as a step in taking a sports ecosystem model built by Vietnamese people to international markets, and said D-Joy will work with the BSU subsidiary on the cooperation items in the period ahead (Vietnamese press coverage of the signing).
The ambition sits further out. D-Joy wants the partnership to open room for pickleball in China and the wider region, and to give young athletes a firmer path towards the SEA Games, ASIAD and the Olympics.
A Run of Signatures Since December
D-Joy hinted at the move on 20 Sep with a teaser post promising a new chapter and something bigger. Beijing is the latest in a run of agreements it has announced since late 2025, each covering a different layer of the operation.
| Date | Partner | What was agreed |
|---|---|---|
| 11 Dec 2025 | Rallyworld Malaysia | A memorandum signed in Kuala Lumpur, paving the way for the D-Joy Pickleball Tour Malaysia 2026 |
| 24 Apr 2026 | DUPR | Partnership upgraded, with DUPR's first Asian office set up inside the D-Joy ecosystem and DUPR ratings used across D-Joy |
| 7 May 2026 | University of Management and Technology Ho Chi Minh City | Internships, professional certifications and scholarships for young athletes |
| 22 Sep 2026 | Beijing Sport University | Cooperation on training, athlete development, competition organization and venue technology |
The first three arrived with a named program attached: a Malaysian tour brand, DUPR ratings across every leg of the D-Joy tour, and an internship and certification pipeline (D-Joy's release on the DUPR and UMT agreements). Beijing is the only one so far described as areas of cooperation rather than a first deliverable.
For Malaysian players, the first row is the one already within reach. The Rallyworld memorandum set up a Malaysian leg of the D-Joy tour, covered in Pickle361's earlier coverage.
This article is based on social media posts and historical data tracked by Pickle361.
