HIGH quality racket play prevailed in an intense Island Padel tournament over the weekend at St Clement’s Sports Club.
The LTA Seniors G2 Competition was a showcase of world-class, competitive padel. Crowds of spectators flocked to the St Clements Sports Club last weekend to witness a fantastic standard of senior padel.
Three categories brought many contestants to the court, over 40s, 50s and 60s divisions were battled out over the weekend.
The most notable winners from the weekend were the impressive female pairing of Vanessa North-Panting and Louise Baker. The pair scooped up both the over 40s and 50s divisions in emphatic fashion.
In the men’s over-40s category, the number one seeds from the UK, Andrew Warren and Romain Luquet, were marked as tournament favourites. However, Jersey’s best put up a fight.
The Jersey number one, Bero Bobus, and his partner, Jon Southern, toppled the favoured pairing, marking a landmark achievement for Island Padel.
The men’s over-50s category, however, was inevitably taken by the same top-class pairing of Warren and Luquet.
The over-60s category was contested only by men. The winners, Keith Gilbert and Michael Thorpe, put on a brilliant display, proving that age is just a number.
The senior’s tournament was a brilliant spectacle depicting the wide reach of padel across the Island.
Scott Clayton, co-founder of Island Padel, was very pleased with how the Jersey community responded: “Everything we do at Island Padel is always based around the community.
“When we started the facility, our ethos was about making the sport as inclusive as possible. So, it was amazing to see so many people coming down to watch, their family, and friends. All in all, it was a fantastic event.”
Some of the best senior players from the UK travelled across the Channel to be greeted by a sunny and serene Jersey, displaying perfect conditions for a weekend of sport.
Clayton was thrilled with the quality of padel exhibited throughout the tournament. “The quality of padel over the weekend was amazing to watch.
“We had some of the best senior players over from the UK, Ireland and France coming over to compete. It was really good to see and amazing for our players on the Island having that exposure to play in a different, and slightly better, competition.”
“Which will really help their games and improve going forward, and also to see how they fare against them.”
Clayton was pleased that spectators enjoyed seeing such class on the court.
“I’m a big believer in seeing what good looks like up close, and I believe our event did that this weekend.”
“I really think that it has helped inspire people to want to be a part of it. Going forward we will definitely look to keep running these events, it’s an investment from us but it’s also an investment into the community.”
Clayton expressed his appreciation for the Island Padel sponsors, Rathbones. “Rathbones are the backbone to not only this competition but everything we do; they’ve been with us from day dot.”
“There wasn’t even a spade in the ground and they backed us. They really believed in the vision and what we are trying to achieve. We’re very fortunate to have them on our side.”
