First "major" in padel in Europe at Roland Garros
A few weeks after the French Open for tennis players, there will be a major for padel players in Europe for the first time on the big stage of Roland Garros.
by Robin Huiber
last edit: Apr 02, 2022, 11:04 pm
More than 280,000 active padel players are currently registered in France, with a strong upward trend. Reason enough for the French Tennis Federation FFT to give padel the largest possible framework. And so, from July 11th to 17th, the Stade Roland Garros will host the first European Major under the umbrella organization International Padel Federation (FIP). As “Paris Premier Padel Major”.
The FIP is starting a completely new tour this year, which will be called "Premier Padel". The first event in this series has already taken place in Qatar. The best players in the world can be expected, above all the two Spaniards Juan LeBron and Alejandro Galan, who also compete on the World Padel Tour. In the current week in Alicante.
France's tennis federation supports the development of padel
Interesting: Apparently the two organizers FIP and the World Padel Tour have not yet agreed on a joint tour. However, the tournament in Roland Garros is scheduled for a week in which there is a break on the World Padel Tour. It is conceivable that a system similar to that in professional tennis would develop, where the Grand Slam tournaments are also organized separately from the WTA and ATP tours.
Gilles Moretton, President of the French Tennis Federation, was delighted with the new major event, which is to be broadcast internationally by leading TV stations such as ESPN and Sky. "It is a privilege to be the first country in Europe to be able to offer the world's best players a 'major' in padel," said Moretton. “This will take padel to new dimensions and further increase the enthusiasm for this sport in France. The FFT supports this with a multifaceted development plan.”