Mexico, Spain and Argentina were the three countries that consolidated the Padel all over the world. This story began to be written in the 60s, although, years ago, the United States would begin the story.
If for something the Padel In recent years it is due to its dizzying growth in international popularity. Between continents the history of the Padel, an involvement of three countries that has culminated in the settlement of Padel as a sports practice.
Origin of Padel
Who created the Padel?
Until reaching the Padel As we know it today, several centuries had to pass. The background of Padel They date back to the end of the 19th century. In the United States, Frank Beal decides to modify a tennis court in order to facilitate the teaching of this sport to the little ones. Simplifying the game also involved using a foam ball and a wooden paddle.
When Frank Beal moves to Manhattan he will continue to expand the changes of dimensions initially promoted in Michigan. A couple of years later, in the neighborhood of Scardale, New York, some tennis courts were adapted with side bars to prevent the loss of Padel Balls and they join Padel Rackets without ropes. The last big change in this modality was to introduce a wooden and sand platform that would allow snow to be removed during the winter and play on rainy days.
The model devised by Frank Beal (Paddle Tennis) and its subsequent readaptation in New York (Platform Tennis) lay the foundations for the history of the Padel.
What year was the Padel?
The first versions of the Padel They settled in the United States around the 1930s. However, in Mexico an event arose that would mark the true birth of this sport.
The history of Padel The current one has a first and last name: Enrique Corcuera. The Mexican businessman decided to wall his 20-meter-long and 10-meter-wide runway to prevent vegetation from occupying part of the land. Using traditional tennis scoring rules, the new sport gained popularity among Corcuera's friends, among whom was Alfonso de Hohenlohe-Langenburg.
Prince Hohenlohe was the founder of Marbella Club, enclave where he built the first two runways in Spain. The Costa del Sol was the reference point for the expansion of the Padel. People of great renown came to this place every year. And among these visitors was the Argentine businessman Julio Menditengui who finally exported the idea to Argentina and the rest of the Latin American countries.
What were the first ones like? Padel Rackets?
The first Padel Rackets They were made of wood. The two modalities that were developed in the United States (Paddle Tennis and Platform Tennis) dispensed with strings on rackets and shortened their handles. of such Shape, that the first version of the Padel Rackets It had a design more similar to that of a beach shovel rather than the Padel Rackets that we currently know.
Of these first Padel Rackets Its weight is also worth noting. Despite its thin thickness, the first Padel Rackets exceeded 380 grams, something that among the Padel Rackets of Padel ProShop It is unthinkable.
Although the wood melted Material predominant, over the years other materials such as aluminum or resin were introduced until the perfection of the Padel Rackets of today.
When did the Padel Rackets?
The Padel Rackets They changed little by little throughout the last two decades of the 20th century. Precisely in this period, carbon or Fiberglass they acquire an important role. Around the 90s Brands like Sane incorporate rubber in their Padel Rackets, after her many others Brands They followed his steps.
With the arrival of the 21st century, technology ended up completely transforming the Padel Rackets of the previous period.
First track of Padel of the world
The first clue of Padel of the world according to Padel Today it is the track built by businessman Enrique Corcuera in his house in Acapulco. The track was 20 meters long and 10 meters wide. The back walls were about 3 meters high and the side walls one less. The Red It was located in the center of the court and on the sides two accesses were provided for the players.
History of Padel in Spain
Who brought the Padel to Spain?
The precursor of Padel in Spain it was Prince Alfonso of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, who in 1974 built the first 2 runways Padel in Marbella. Little by little, the sport of Mexican origin became popular among visitors to Marbella. Club.
Alfonso de Hohenlohe was a great friend of Corcuera and between one of the many visits of the aristocratic class to the Mexican's house in Acapulco, the Spanish businessman fell in love with the Padel. Upon his return to Spain, Hohenlohe introduced modifications to the tracks present in the Club, but this was not enough, so in 1974 he built the first two runways of Padel in Spain. As a particularity, these two runways had wire fences that completely covered both sides.
When did you start playing Padel in Spain?
The growth and practice of Padel in Spain it was gradual. After the construction of the first two runways Padel In the country, the sport is popularized through the organization of tournaments.
At the end of the 90s the number of tracks multiplied Padel and, along with this, the number of players of Padel. Catalonia, Andalusia and the Basque Country are examples of other communities that also installed tennis courts. Padel.
Likewise, when political figures, businessmen, athletes and journalists began to practice Padel, His growth skyrocketed. One of the most famous examples is the case of former president José María Aznar. During his period as president, the media covered some of the informal parties of the former president and the Padel It reached millions of homes that did not yet know of its existence.
Other key figures for the expansion of the Padel in Spain it was Manolo Santana. The Spanish tennis player organizing tournaments on the Costa del Sol caused more and more clubs to want to have their own tennis courts. Padel.
The history of Padel it keeps being rewritten. In this last decade, the Padel It has become one of the most practiced sports in Spain. One of the reasons for its expansion has been the installation of more and more runways. Padel and, of course, by big names in the world Padel that have ended up popularizing a sport in full global expansion.