L’AS Phoenix in Tahiti made the powder speak during the International Cup of Padel Clubs. In this interview, Alain Siu, President of the club, tells us about the evolution of padel on the island, the infrastructures anti-cycloniques created to protect the courts, and ambitious projects like the Pacific Cup scheduled for April 2025. Padel at the Olympic Games: a goal. This event, unique in its kind, could well make Tahiti a nerve center of padel in the Peaceful.
The adventure to go to Europe
We took 10 days because it takes 24 hours of flightwith a stopover at Los Angeles and a time difference of 12 hours. In other words, when Europe rises, we in Tahiti go to bed.
But we were lucky enough to come across the Greenweez Paris Premier Padel Major during the first rounds of qualifying. This allowed us to acclimatize before coming to Malaga to begin two days of training, followed by the club tournament.
From Federer to padel
I have been playing tennis since 30 ans and I am also president of the tennis federation and the tennis club Phoenix tennis and squash for so long. There is 5 ansduring a trip, I wanted to buy a snowshoe Roger Federer in memory of his retirement, but a friend suggested that I take an interest in fell. Thanks to this, we started with two courts in Tahiti, then we grew to three, and before long we will open four new indoor courtswith a height of 9 meters and imposing structures, almost worthy of a palace.
Anti-cyclonic structures
Due to climatic conditions and the risk of hurricanes, we have taken precautions to prevent storm-related damage. We have seen the effects of global warmingespecially with winds at 200 km/h as during the storms in the Antilles and Reunion. This pushed us to invest in structures anti-cycloniquesbecause the padel, with its glass walls, is sensitive to these climatic phenomena.
When the storm passes Belal in Reunion, padel courts were damaged, with broken windows. Today, some manufacturers offer models resistant to these winds, such as the Hurricane range with windows of 15 mm thick and sturdy poles, which makes us feel safe.
1000 members in the club
With the opening of the new courts, we hope to reach the 1000 members by the end of the year. The craze for fell in Tahiti is simply incredible. I never imagined such growth in such a short time.
We will soon have as many members for padel as tennis licensees for the whole island. Other clubs in Tahiti are starting to take an interest in padel, with the installation of courts everywhere. This is truly the start of a great adventure for our island.
Training and competitions
We have signed a partnership with theSolano Academy of Malaga, very renowned for the training of young champions. A full-time instructor will come to Tahiti, which will allow our members and young people from the Pacific – such as those from New Caledonia, New Zealand and Australia – to come and train in Tahiti.
We are riding the momentum created by Paris Olympic Gamesparticularly with the test of surf relocated to Teahupo’oin Tahiti. In addition, the gold medal won by the Polynesian Kauli Vaast brought phenomenal visibility to our island.
With this momentum, I think it’s time to organize a peaceful event in padel. Europe, South America, the United States and Africa are already well underway in padel, but here, in the Pacific, everything remains to be done. Asia is just starting to show an interest in it, and I believe that padel has its place in this part of the world.
The Pacific Cup for April 2025
We set the Pacific Cup for the last week of April 2025. Delegations from Japan, Australia, New Caledonia, Tahiti, Chile and Panama will participate. We are finalizing registrations and partnerships with hotels, as Tahiti is a fairly expensive tourist destination.
Players will not browse 23 000 km only to play padel. We plan tourist activities, surfing, immersions in Polynesian culture, dances, and many other experiences so that their stay in Polynesia is a unforgettable memory.
After Paris 2024the Olympic Games 2028 will take place at Los Angelesbut without the padel. However, in 2032it will be the turn of Brisbanein Australia, near the Pacific. With the Pacific Cup and support from neighboring islands, we will put pressure on the CIO so that the fell be included. It would be a huge victory for our sport.
Franck Binisti discovered padel at the Club des Pyramides in 2009 in the Paris region. Since then, padel has been part of his life. You often see him touring France going to cover major French padel events.
