The show begins: Cagliari among the ‘bigs’ of padel

The FIP PLATINUM Sardegna show has begun. With the press conference held at the Cagliari Tennis Club, the international padel tournament, promoted by the Autonomous Region of Sardinia, Department of Tourism, Handicrafts and Trade, under the patronage of the Cagliari Municipality, officially got underway. After the end of the qualifying rounds, the main draw matches, both men’s and women’s, began today, with many of the world’s best players playing on the TC Cagliari courts. The city has already hosted international tournaments in the past years: among them, two editions (2020 and 2021) of the CUPRA FIP Finals, the final event of the circuit organised by the International Padel Federation, which in 2022 alone saw more than 120 tournaments organised around the world. “Cagliari now has a solid tradition with padel and it is always a pleasure and an honour to host major international events that allow our city, among other things, to confirm its attractiveness in every month of the year”, said the mayor of Cagliari, Paolo Truzzu. “For some years now, Cagliari has been the home of sport, and today we can say that we have entered the quadrilateral of the great padel events, together with Rome, Milan and Turin”.

“Cagliari will once again be the venue for an international appointment of padel, which year after year conquers athletes and spectators alike”, continued Gianni Chessa, Councillor for Tourism, Handicrafts and Trade of Sardinia. “This is a further opportunity for media visibility for Sardinia, which, thanks to a rich programme of sporting events, wants to consecrate itself as the ‘island of sport’. Over forty events that, from March to November, cross the entire island, intensifying tourist promotion and contributing to the objective of deseasonalising tourist flows”.

“The technical level here is very high”, said Luigi Carraro, chairman of the International Padel Federation. “We have the best players, who mostly come from 16 countries. For us it is very important because until a few years ago padel was populated by players from only two countries, Spain and Argentina, and the fact that we now have athletes from so many nations makes us very proud”. The president thanks for the support of the institutions, especially the councillor for Tourism Chessa: “Together we have established free entry to FIP PLATINUM Sardegna to make a gift to all padel fans in the region, who have always responded with great warmth to our discipline”.

Angelo Binaghi, president of the Italian Tennis and Padel Federation, also was among the speakers of the press conference: “The Cagliari Tennis Club is home to the most important padel tournament in Italy after the Rome Major and the Milan P1, and also for tennis it is home to the most prestigious tournament after the Internazionali d’Italia and the Turin Atp Finals. I think it is a location to be proud of”. International events such as the FIP PLATINUM, he continued, “have an added value for the city and the Region, both because they promote their image in the world, and because they create an important induced activity for the economy”. In closing, the president of the Cagliari Tennis Club, Renato Arba, also welcomed the event.

In the FIP PLATINUM Sardegna, 200 ranking points are up for grabs for the winners and a prize money of 60,000 euros equally distributed between men and women, for a total prize money of 120,000 euros. Federico Chingotto and Miguel ‘Mike’ Yanguas – respectively world number 9 and 22 in the world – lead the men’s entry list; Maria Virginia Riera, number 8, and Tamara Icardo, number 10, are instead the first seeded players in the women’s main draw, both made up of 28 pairs, four of which come from the qualifiers. Today and tomorrow the first round matches will be played; Thursday, on the other hand, will be the day of the debut of the big players who will benefit from a ‘bye’ and will go straight into the round of 16. On Friday, the quarters are scheduled, Saturday the semifinals and Sunday the finals. Admission to TC Cagliari is free for all spectators, the weather is promising: there are all the ingredients for a wonderful week of padel.