Racquet-sport sensation Padel is set to be introduced to the Maltese Islands early next year amid nation-wide interest.
The sport which has, since its birth in the late sixties, been endorsed by many celebrities, including tennis players like Rafael Nadal, now ranks highly in countries such as Spain where the world number one has even started his own academy.
Karl and Janika Wijkmark from Padel Malta Ltd, who will be spearheading the project, told the Sunday Times of Malta that Padel is a sport which is already close to heart, not only to them but also many people residing in Malta already.
“We actually started working on this project three years ago when we had experienced Padel abroad and asked ourselves why we didn’t have this amazing sport in Malta?” Janika Wijkmark remarked.
“The sport is something which can provide an alternative to those who want to practice sport in a more social way.”
The pair explained how their organisation has already held talks with SportMalta regarding forming the country’s first Padel club and has been working on building two courts in Pembroke which are set to launch around mid-January.
The ‘doubles’ sport which feels like a mix of both tennis and squash was introduced in Mexico but has recently spread all over the world. The sport finds its climax at the World Padel Tour and the World Padel Federation is also pushing towards Olympic involvement.
Asked about location, they admitted that at this point, the greater audience is mostly foreigners and that the majority of interest has come from people in Malta who work at Gaming companies and so Pembroke would be ideal for them to start.
“We wanted our courts to be close to those who already know the sport and so we thought it would be wise to choose Pembroke,” Karl Wijkmark said.
“We think that like this, the sport can start small and gradually grow locally as well.
“We initially thought of starting with just one court to test the waters but in order for the sport to grow you need more than just one area to play.”
Local community
The sport’s focus is mainly creating a local community, already having created social elements like an app which players can use to book sessions as well as rate other players after games.
“We wanted Padel to help people move away from the usual cliques and make new friends through the sport,” Janika Wijkmark said.
Their plan for the sport, which is also in the interest of Zlatan Ibrahimovic who also owns a number of courts in his home country, is also to become competitive.
As a result, Karl Wijkmark explained how they are working towards becoming recognised by the sport’s federation once the sport kicks off in Malta and that they are already looking at bidding to host an international competition in Malta next September.
Another item on their agenda, was to bring in an international coach to be at the disposal of players looking to better their game.
With this in mind, they said they are exploring ways to focus on youth by getting into after-school programmes to eventually create a new generation of local players who can make a name for the country in the future.
The project is set for its final preparations and Karl Wijkmark explained that, “We have the ambition to grow Padel big all over Malta with Padel centres all over the island.”
More details about Padel Malta can be found below: