Vienna Padel Open: track record after an exciting final Sunday
The Vienna Padel Open in the STEFFL Arena ended on Sunday. Two spectacular and exciting finals formed the culmination of the first World Padel Tour tournament in German-speaking countries. Tournament Director Dominik Beier gives a positive balance after eight days of padel action and over 150 satisfied players.
by p.m
last edit: Jun 12, 2022, 10:17 pm
The finals of the Vienna Padel Open were on the program on Sunday. Ariana Sánchez and Paula Josemaría secured the women's title. The second-seeded Spaniards defeated their top-seeded compatriots Gemma Triay/Alejandra Salazar 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 in an exciting and hard-fought final.
Third title of the year
Sánchez/Josemaria just had to give up the first set, after the more than three-hour semi-final on Saturday, many fans in the STEFFL Arena believed it was a physical collapse, but the two fought back and forced a deciding set. In this, Sánchez/Josemaria quickly took the lead with a break and then closed the sentence.
"It's incredible to win here. That was a tough final, after yesterday's marathon match we're just exhausted now. Thank you, Vienna!” Sánchez/Josemaria celebrated their third tournament victory of the year. With the title, the two secure prize money of around 20,000 euros, Triay/Salazar take home around 14,000 euros.
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“Vienna is beautiful”
The men's title went to Argentina's Sanyo Gutiérrez and Agustín Tapia. The number 3 in the world prevailed in a thrilling final 6:1, 0:6, 7:6 against the top seeded Spaniards Alejandro Galán/Juan Lebrón. The third set developed into a thriller: Gutiérrez/Tapia had to fend off three match points when the score was 5:6.
"We knew then that it could be over. We had our backs to the wall, but we unpacked our best shots," explains Gutiérrez. Tapia, also known as "Mozart from Catamarca", was enthusiastic: "Vienna is beautiful, we felt very comfortable here from the start. We look forward to coming again.”
Track record of the Vienna Padel Open
A total of 200,000 euros was distributed to men and women. During the tournament week, more than 10,000 fans flocked to the STEFFL Arena. Tournament director Dominik Beier sums up with satisfaction: “We managed to reach a lot of people in the first year of the tournament. Thanks to the entire team for the great efforts over the last few days, weeks and months. The effort and hard work has clearly paid off.”
The live broadcasts on ORF Sport+ and LAOLA1 reached tens of thousands of people. The feedback from the protagonists is much more important to Dominik Beier than numbers and quotas. "The players have assured us that it is the best organized tournament outside of Spain. They were completely satisfied, starting with the location with the short distances, through hospitality to the atmosphere in the hall," says the tournament boss, who and his team also fulfilled unusual requests: "With our shuttle service we have one or the other excited. Some players wanted to go out for a typically Austrian meal at short notice, so we organized Schnitzel for them. That may sound banal, but the athletes should feel comfortable with us and be happy to come back.”
Because the World Padel Tour, and thus the best padel players in the world, should come to Austria in the coming years. Beier: "The Vienna Padel Open should become a fixed point in the domestic sports calendar. In any case, we are planning it firmly, basically we have a four-year plan. It was a great start, we learned a lot and want to get even better.”