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Inside Madrid's padel tournament: from the VAR room to the medical “confessional”

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

In-depth Named sources Context piece
  • Madrid is hosting the Premier Padel tournament for the fifth consecutive year, with hundreds of staff supporting the event at the Movistar Arena.
  • Behind the competition, organisers provide dedicated spaces for players, medical treatment, recovery work and video refereeing.
  • The tournament conducts about 600 post-match recovery treatments and includes urine testing that could be ordered by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

Madrid has become the global centre of padel for a fifth consecutive year, but the Premier Padel tournament is about more than the matches. Its organisation mobilises hundreds of people behind the scenes at the Movistar Arena, a venue that can hold almost 15,000 spectators.

The glass has a high coefficient of elasticity so that it does not break when the players collide with it.

· Fernando ÁlvarezThe tournament director explained how the panoramic panels around the central court are designed.

The blue-carpeted central court is the tournament's most recognisable feature. Two wooden panels support the surface, while panoramic glass panels surround it. Their joints are coated with silicone to give spectators a clearer view. Fernando Álvarez, the tournament director and operations chief at Esedos Padel, said the glass has enough elasticity to withstand players' impacts without breaking.

Players have a restricted-access lounge with a television, sofas, food, coffee and drinks. They use it to prepare and relax, while relatives have a separate room nearby. A purpose-built gym occupies the floor below, with artificial grass covering the floor. “All the players come through here. What they want is to be calm. They do not ask for any extravagances,” Álvarez said. A few PlayStations provide another distraction.

All the players come through here. What they want is to be calm. They do not ask for any extravagances.

· Fernando ÁlvarezHe described the purpose of the players' restricted-access lounge.

The most private area is the medical office and physiotherapy room, installed in the dressing room used by artists performing at the arena. Premier Padel's chief medical officer, Alessio Gialli, compares it to “the church confessional”. Players receive treatment there, discuss their problems and leave their conversations in confidence. Organisers carry out about 600 recovery treatments after matches, handle injuries and other medical issues, and keep a record of each player's medication.

The church confessional.

· Alessio GialliThe chief medical officer used the comparison to describe the privacy of the medical and physiotherapy room.

The room also hosts urine tests that the World Anti-Doping Agency may require. Padel added such controls last year as it pursued Olympic recognition. Elsewhere, the video-refereeing room is accessible only to the International Padel Federation referee and the technician assisting with the cameras. The system works like football's VAR, with 11 cameras covering the central court.

When the player is on the treatment table, they tell you a bit of everything. What is said stays here.

· Alessio GialliGialli described the confidential conversations that take place during treatment.
About this summary

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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