Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
Padel sport is creating a big ‘racquet’ in the kingdom with clubs popping up for people to enjoy the fun and social game while a newly-formed federation works on developing a national squad to compete internationally.
The game, which is a mix between tennis and squash, is considered the fastest-growing sport across the globe and Bahrain aims to serve up some of the top competitors in the sport.
“Padel is a new sport overall around the world and Bahrain,” said triathlete star and Ironman finisher Mariam Turki, who is a board member of the Bahrain Padel Federation, heading the marketing and public relations committee.
“I think it is so popular because it is for everyone, easy to learn and fun to play. Also, it is a team sport which makes it more exciting.”
It’s usually played in doubles, on an enclosed court, surrounded by walls of glass and metallic mesh. The court is one third of the size of a tennis court. An important skill is match-craft, as points are won rather by strategy than by sheer strength and power.
The ball can bounce off any wall but can only hit the turf once before being returned. Points can be scored when the ball bounces twice on the competitors’ field.
It is effortless to learn for players of all ages and skills and is not dominated solely by strength, technique and serve as in games such as tennis. It is an ideal game for men, women and youth to compete together.
“We aspire to have the young generation participate in this sport and encourage schools and universities to be part of our journey,” explained Turki. “Our vision is to also have a padel academy to serve talented athletes and groom them to become top players worldwide.”
The World Padel Tour, for example, has been increasingly gaining momentum each year. It was launched in partnership with Estrella Damm in 2013 and is the most important professional padel championship in the world, both from the organisational level of the tournaments and the participation of the best international players. Its central headquarters is in Spain, where 12 of the 16 tournaments in the calendar are developed.
This young sport has lived to see a great professional outburst in the last 10 years. After a big blast in Argentina in the 90s and from 2015, the sport experienced a constant growth.
Every tournament attracts an average of 20,000 fans to stadiums. These numbers set padel, in Spain, as the third best supported sport, only behind football and basketball, overcoming other more-established sports such as handball.
Although padel is not yet an Olympic sport, it has met all but one of the requirements needed. On September 13, 2019, padel was recognised as an international sport by the International Olympic Committee. Once the male side of the sport reaches 75 National Federations, Olympic Status can be obtained ... and Bahrain will be ready for it.
The Bahrain Padel Federation – which also includes Fahad Kanoo as president, Yousif Jume, as vice president and board members Ali Mattar, Habib Jawad, Mohamed Al Rumaihi, Ali Sharif, Khalifa Rashdan, Abdulla Buali and Khaled Al Rayes – has formed a strong national team of 15 men and 15 women to represent the island in readiness for national and international tournaments.
“We contacted all the padel clubs in Bahrain and asked them to recommend their best players and then these players came for try-outs over three weeks of training, every day,” she explained. “We will be announcing the national team soon with a photo shoot and individual introductions on our social media platforms.”
For more details check out @padelfederation.bh on Instagram
