When Daniel Moore ’11 was introduced to pickleball by his father in 2014, he had no idea the sport would become a major part of his life. A tennis star at Azusa Pacific University, Moore quickly fell in love with pickleball, and decided to train with his father for a national competition. Both Moores won national championships in the senior and open divisions. “That was just the beginning of our pickleball journey,” he said. Over the next decade, Moore would go on to win eight more national championships, before ending his professional playing career and introducing pickleball to Japan and Kenya.
Originally born in Atlanta, Moore’s family moved to Japan when he was just seven-months-old so his father could pursue a master’s degree at a Japanese university. Although the family had planned to only spend two years in the country, business opportunities arose and they ended up staying for the next 16 years. “Growing up in Japan felt normal at times since it was what I knew from infancy,” Moore said. “At other times, I recognized how much I stood out as one of the only westerners in my city.”
Moore developed an affinity for tennis, training with his dad and siblings after school every day. He grew his skills and competed in numerous local and national tournaments. During his junior year of high school, Moore’s family moved back to the U.S., settling in Colorado Springs. Although he had visited America every summer as a kid, transitioning to public high school in the U.S. was a culture shock for Moore. Fortunately, he found a way to fit in after leading his school to a state championship in tennis. Moore’s success on the court led APU to recruit him.
At APU, Moore thrived on the tennis team. During his freshman year, he went 15-5 in singles and 18-8 in doubles, as the team posted a 20-8 record and went all the way to the semifinal round of the NAIA championships.
Being on the tennis team felt like home for me because every other player was an international student,” he said. “The success we had as a team my freshman year was really fun to be a part of.
Moore played for one more season, but made the difficult decision to quit the team in his junior year so he could study abroad through the Middle East Studies Program in Egypt. Through the program, Moore learned about history, politics, and current events in the Middle East and got to speak to diplomats from several countries when his cohort traveled to Israel, Turkey, Syria, and Jordan. “That was a really formative experience for me which broadened my horizons and helped me to look at what’s going on in the world through different perspectives,” Moore said. The semester away also cultivated a desire in him to travel more.
Moore returned to APU for his last three semesters of college, which were highlighted by memories with friends in the Third Culture Kids Club. “TCK had a strong community camaraderie. Even though we grew up in lots of different countries, we had similar experiences,” he said. “It was great to have that core group of friends from TCK at school.” Moore also reflected fondly on an influential senior seminar class. As an international business major, Moore was one of a select group of students who was invited to participate in former APU president Jon Wallace’s senior seminar. In Wallace’s class, Moore enjoyed hearing from several local CEOs, nonprofit leaders, and APU board members about their entrepreneurial journeys. Moore was inspired to write his thesis for Wallace’s class about economic challenges in Africa. “One of my favorite memories from APU is listening to Jon Wallace read my paper in front of the class as an example of what a good thesis should look like,” Moore said.
After graduating, Moore briefly moved to Kenya to work for a social enterprise selling fuel efficient stoves. He enjoyed learning about the country’s culture and gained an appreciation for things Americans take for granted, like electricity and wi-fi, which would frequently go out in Kenya. After a year and a half, he quit his job and traveled across five countries in Africa before moving back to the U.S. and discovering pickleball.
After winning his first pickleball national championship, Moore began playing in tournaments more frequently. He loved the intimate community that the sport cultivated. “Back then, pickleball was so much smaller than it is today. Everybody knew each other. It was very welcoming and inclusive,” he said. “I could show up in pretty much every state in the country and there would always be a place for me to stay, a couple who wanted me to put on a pickleball clinic for their friends.” Moore watched the sport grow rapidly over the next few years in the U.S.
When he wasn’t playing pickleball, Moore worked part-time as a tour guide, showing Japanese tourists around Colorado. Then in winter 2013, he received an opportunity through a family connection to work at a ski resort in Japan, who needed someone fluent in Japanese and English. “Although that job was just for a few months, when I went back to Japan, it really felt like home, and I realized I had to figure out a way to move back permanently,” he said. Moore landed a job at a tour guiding agency in Japan and moved back in 2015.
After returning to Japan, Moore was thrilled to introduce the country to pickleball. Although the sport is still much smaller in the land of the rising sun, Moore has watched it grow steadily. He estimates there are about 10,000 Japanese pickleball players now. “It feels like we’re still gathering more momentum as we grow the sport professionally,” he said. “I’m privileged to know that anyone who plays or will play pickleball in Japan will have some connection to me. It’s so cool to see people having fun and making friends on the court.” Moore enjoys watching people play pickleball for the first time, since it takes just a few minutes to learn, but a lifetime to master. He coaches the best players in Japan to get better at their craft.
My goal is to put Japanese pickleball on the map. In a few years, Japanese players could be among the best in the world.
Inspired by his love for pickleball and his experience in tour guiding, Moore founded two companies: Pickleball Trips and Active Travel Japan. Pickleball Trips takes people on expeditions across Japan and around the world to play at top pickleball venues. Moore runs the company with his dad and brothers. “It’s truly a family business,” he said. “We love showing people around our favorite spots and sharing Japan’s awesome culture with them.” Moore started Active Travel Japan after the pandemic began in 2020 and his other tour guiding job shut down. He has three AirNBs, “the Snow Monkeys,” where people can stay, and he can host pickleball camps. The company also offers a way for tourists to see beautiful and historic parts of Japan on walking, hiking, biking, and snowshoeing tours.
In addition to running his companies, Moore writes travel blogs to promote tourism in Nagano Prefecture and periodically appears on TV to promote pickleball. “I love the variety my jobs provide,” Moore said. “Every day is different. Tour guiding and teaching pickleball keeps things interesting. I’ve tried to settle down and focus on one in the past, but I realized I need them both.”