Pickleball player Diana Hughes captures mixed doubles gold

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- Philippine-based pickleball player Diana Hughes continued her dominant international run, capturing the Mixed Doubles 35+ Open gold medal alongside Malaysian partner Ritchie Lee at the VREW by Lenmis Pickleball Championship 2026.

The pair rebounded from an earlier round-robin defeat against their finals opponents to claim the title in the championship match, marking Hughes' second gold medal in a single week.

The victory comes days after Hughes earned two medals at the PPA Asia 1000 in Kuala Lumpur, where she teamed with Grace Woo to win gold in the Women’s Doubles 35+ division and secured a silver medal in Women’s Singles 35+.

In the Kuala Lumpur doubles final, Hughes and Woo defeated Chinese Taipei’s Li Ting Su and Chih Hsuan Hsu. Hughes went undefeated in the singles round-robin stage before taking silver after facing Li in the final.

The recent string of podium finishes extends a campaign across Southeast Asia for Hughes and Woo, who began their partnership with a silver medal at the WPC Bangkok in May and gold at the Ormoc tournament in June.

The duo subsequently took bronze at the PPA 500 Singapore in July, gold in Dumaguete in August, and silver at the PPA Asia Vietnam. Hughes also picked up a mixed doubles silver in Vietnam alongside Davis Alano.

Hughes, sponsored by Gearbox, attributes her recent performances to regular training regimes at Pickleball Central Philippines and the Paddlemates Pickleball Hub.