The Bandeja Magazine Issue 2

International
La Manga
padel upgrade
If you fancy playing padel in winter sun, The Racquets Club within
La Manga Club, Spain, has undergone a major transformation and
now has seven floodlit courts, with another four in the planning.
Almost €2 million has been invested in the refurbishment and a full
programme of coaching is in full swing, with resident coach David
Pey organising one-to-one coaching, intro to padel sessions, five-day junior/adult courses, padel
weekends, social sessions and competitions. The courts are at the centre of The Racquets Club and have, according to
the facility, become a social hub. With the additional four courts it will be one of the largest non-member padel clubs in
Southern Europe. www.lmctennis.com
padel boom in Africa
Padel is set to take Africa by storm
with a new organisation - Padel
Africa - planning to open some
40 new centres in eight countries
in the coming years.
At the helm of Padel Africa is Michael
Mathiesen, founder of venture
capitalist the Bambwa Group. The
Danish entrepreneur plans for each
centre to have a minimum of five
courts and has high hopes of the
continent producing an African world
champion in due course - and a
number of countries sending padel
teams to the Olympics, should the
sport be included.
“I am so excited,” Michael told
The Bandeja. “The world’s fastest
growing sport is being introduced
to the world’s next growth centre,
with millions of potential new
players. Our vision includes plans
to support local communities through
a ‘street padel’ concept, community
outreach so that young people can
enjoy the game and the establishment
of padel academies to deliver training
programmes to kids.”
The first two Padel Africa centres,
developed with PadelTotal and PadeliQ,
are planned for Accra, in Ghana,
and Kigali, in Rwanda, with a target
demographic of expats, diplomats
and the middle classes. Michael hopes
these centres will be open by the end
of the year, after which focus will turn
to Kenya, Senegal, Nigeria, Zambia and
South Africa, where padel has already
gained a foothold.
“Analysis has shown that padel has
all the conditions to become a real
African sport, where action, fun
and social community are natural
cornerstones of African culture and
lifestyle,” Michael said.
Padel isn’t new to Africa. The sport
landed in South Africa three years ago
at the Western Cape and the country
now has some 26 facilities and around
60 courts with many more planned. At
least eight other African countries also
have courts, including Angola, Egypt,
Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Morocco,
Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia.
StarVie backs cancer charity
Racket manufacturer StarVie joined forces with the Spanish Association
Against Cancer (AECC) in a fundraising drive to support research into breast
cancer. The initiative kicked off on October 19th - World Breast Cancer Day -
at the World Padel Tour Estrella Damm Menorca Open tournament, with StarVie
players Bea Gonzalez, Javier Garrido, Coki Nieto, Carolina Navarro and Cecilia
Reiter all taking to the court with pink padel rackets designed for AECC.
WINTER 2023
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