Inspiring Women Spring 2018

Inspiration from The Netherlands
KRISHNA THAKRAR
American Women’s Club of The Hague,
Netherlands
From: Kenya
Lives: The Hague, Netherlands
I am of Indian decent born in Kenya and
educated in the United Kingdom. In 1984 I got
married and moved from the UK to Canada
and from there on to the US, India, China,
Belgium, three other states of the US and now
I’m here in the Netherlands.
Professionally I am an accountant, my work with
GE has given me opportunities to work in the UK,
Canada and the US. Upon our return to the US
in 2005 I started working independently as an
accountant as well as a relocation specialist.
Throughout my high school years I played
netball (similar to basketball, smaller court,
slightly different rules and no dribbling of the
ball), and rounders (similar to softball). Once I started studying in the UK, I took up squash and
reached a level that allowed me to compete at county level. I continued to play intermittently
after I got married and moved to Canada. Due to
injuries, I was forced to give up squash, eventually
finding enjoyment in badminton.
Early in 2015 I was introduced to Pickleball (PB) by a
fellow badminton player in Minneapolis who was also
playing PB. Despite hearing about it I had no interest.
But soon the numbers of badminton players were
decreasing and we were losing our courts to PB
players. So I turned to the gym as my new form of
regular exercise.
May 2015 came around and I decided to finally give
PB a try. That summer I must have played every day,
looking for various locations to play all over the city
and playing in various teams. Interestingly enough, I
learnt one could play 3-4 times a day as there were so
many locations where PB was being played!
It dawned on me, instead of traveling to Amsterdam to
play PB, why not bring PB to The Hague. I knew this
would be a challenge but it would be rewarding to
introduce my passion to a city new to me.
With some of The Hague team at the Dutch
National Tournament
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