Interview with Raffaele Chiulli, president of GAISF: “Padel Olympic Sport”
The numbers speak for themselves. Padel is transforming strongly by permanently abandoning the reputation of the sport of the moment, fashion and as a consequence of short duration.
Today, the federation action, especially thanks to the continuous impulse of the president Luigi Carraro, is taking great steps so Padel can have the definitive consecration in the Olympus of sport.
The interview with the president of GAISF, Raffaele Chiulli, published in the Italian newspaper IL TEMPO is proof that the road is all downhill.
The journalist Federico Maselli met with the highest position of the Global Association of International Sports Federations during the last European Championships held in Rome and with which he highlighted the path of Padel growth and how it is showing internationally.
Below you can find the full article:
“Padel is no longer just a passing fad: numbers in hand, it is a sport in continuous and rapid growth that can aspire to become Olympic.” To certify the worldwide evolution of the Padel Raffaele Chiulli, the president of GAISF (Global Association of International Sports Federations), the international association that brings together more than 100 sports federations. defines with a metaphor: “For the disciplines that aspire to the Olympics, the institution represents the trial period to obtain a full-blown license”.
Invited as honorary guest at the last edition of the XI European Padel Championship in Rome, Chiulli praises the work carried out by Luigi Carraro, president of the International Padel Federation. And he urges him to continue along the same path. “We are at his side so that the Padel’s dream can come true: to become an Olympic sport.”
An ambition that, in order to be realized, must follow a well-defined process: after having applied for GAISF membership, a two-year period must pass, during which a Federation will be granted as observer status. “At this stage, the institutional body must demonstrate that it has all the characteristics required by the statute in both formal and substantive terms,” explains Raffaele Chiulli “For FIP to be recognized as a permanent member, specifically, in recent years it has proven to be a recognized constitution worldwide, solid, with exemplary, transparent governance, with non-discrimination criteria for athletes and employees”.
On the qualities of the Padel, the president of the Global Association has no doubt: “It is a very growth phenomenon, capable of involving both on and off the court. Many countries are welcoming it for its characteristics of inclusive, socializing and aggregating sport. It is a sport that is bursting, engaging, dynamic and, above all, universal.”
For a sport to become an Olympic sport, it must conform to more than 50 principles, beginning with its universal nature. It must then have growth plans for the participation of new generations and obtain formal recognition from the relevant governing institutions (e.g. National Olympic Committees or National Federations). It must also respect the environment and the sustainability of materials. Non-discrimination in terms of gender, ability, race, and religion also plays a key role.
To facilitate the recognition of Padel, GAISF has helped with talks between the FIP of Carraro and the International Tennis Federation of David Haggarty. A constructive and frank dialogue that allowed to evaluate all the synergistic elements for the admission of Padel to Olympic sport.
President Chiulli advises: “It is necessary to homogenize some institutional disparities: in some countries, the Padel federation is a rib of the tennis, in others, it is completely autonomous. We must all have one big goal: to support new disciplines such as Padel, which, with the right support, can reach even more people, more nations, more continents”.
