Thomas Bach to Carraro: “You have done a great job spreading padel worldwide”

February 4, 2025
Thomas Bach to Carraro: “You have done a great job  spreading padel worldwide”

The five Olympic rings standing out against the backdrop of the CONI Hall of Honor in Rome, the photographers’ shots — capturing the presidents of the IOC and the FIP, Thomas Bach and Luigi Carraro, respectively — perfectly symbolize the Great Dream of all those who love our sport: padel at the Olympic Games. Everything seems clearer when the president of the International Padel Federation, Luigi Carraro, holds the FIP’s ‘world’ racket — gold in color, an elegant coincidence reminiscent of Olympic gold medals — to present it to the president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, who holds it with a smile, posing for flashes and cameras. At that moment, the photographers’ clicks double, triple, and soon become uncountable.

 

The occasion is of absolute prestige: a meeting between IOC President Thomas Bach and the top representatives of Italian sports. Then comes the conversation between the head of the IOC and Luigi Carraro, followed by Bach’s compliments for “the enormous work that the FIP has carried out in recent years, spreading padel across the world and promoting both amateur and competitive play”. Luigi Carraro then thanked Thomas Bach: “I thank him, his words are a recognition of the work of the FIP, the national federations that dedicate themselves daily to the growth of our sport, and all those who work with passion both on and off the padel courts”.