UPA Asia Trailblazers Season 2 Gets RPO Coaching Power-Up; Collin Johns to Lead December Camp

Photo Credits to: UPA Asia (https://upa-asia.com/season-2-of-upa-asia-trailblazers-program-gets-rpo-boost-collin-johns-to-lead-camp/)

UPA Asia has opened applications for Season 2 of its Trailblazers Program and, this year, the talent pipeline gets a major lift: a strategic partnership with the Racket Professional Organization (RPO) to professionalize coaching across Asia. The collaboration expands Trailblazers beyond player development to include structured coach education and mentorship.

RPO Named Technical Partner

As the program’s official technical partner, RPO will design coaching standards and curriculum with UPA Asia, creating a consistent framework for how the sport is taught—from fundamentals to high-performance decision-making. The organizations will also co-author the Trailblazers Technical Handbook, a shared playbook to align training language, practice planning, and evaluation across the continent.

Collin Johns to Head December Pre-Selection Camp

Former world No. 1 doubles player and RPO Center of Excellence Technical Director Collin Johns has been appointed Head Coach of the Trailblazers Pre-Selection Training Camp in December. Johns will design and lead the camp, aligning elite on-court tactics with modern coaching pedagogy.

Johns will be supported by Chris Harradine, Josh Jenkins, and a roster of experienced coaches from across Asia, blending global best practices with regional insight.

Photo Credits to: UPA Asia (https://upa-asia.com/season-2-of-upa-asia-trailblazers-program-gets-rpo-boost-collin-johns-to-lead-camp/)

A Bigger Lane for Coaches

Season 2 doubles as a proving ground for Asian coaches via RPO’s COEBRA program, which places coaches inside high-intensity training environments for practical, mentored experience. The goal: build a deeper bench of certified, competition-ready coaches who can scale pickleball sustainably at clubs, schools, and academies.