Carraro: “The Rome Major was a success, the wild card for Sara Errani made us happy. The Olympic dream? Only one path: working to deserve it”

From the BNL Italy Major Premier Padel at the Foro Italico and the wild card granted to Sara Errani, to the CUPRA FIP Tour and Promises circuits for younger players; from the pride of a ‘pure’ system of combined men’s and women’s tournaments to the dream of the Olympics, and initiatives aimed at involving amateur players with the stars of global padel. In an interview with the Italian news agency Ansa, the president of the International Padel Federation, Luigi Carraro, touched on some of the most relevant and current topics in the world of padel and the federation he leads.

“We’ve built a circuit that is unique across all sports”, he said regarding the combined tournaments. “No other sport systematically combines men’s and women’s competitions”. Carraro reaffirmed a key principle of the global padel system: “We believe in equality, and in padel, women are protagonists. The wild card for Sara Errani is proof of how much this movement is growing. Having a player like her in our sport is a source of pride, and I’m sure this will be the first of many appearances”.

Carraro’s statements came shortly after it was announced that Italy now has over 10,000 padel courts, while internationally, the number of national federations stands at 87 – a figure expected to exceed 100 by the end of the year. The goals are clear: to continue expanding the sport’s base, with more than 300 tournaments in the CUPRA FIP Tour playing a crucial role.

“They are the foundation for those who will go on to play in Premier Padel”, Carraro explained. “The same goes for the FIP Promises circuit, which is aimed at young players”. For a Major like the one in Rome to keep growing, two things are needed: “Bringing fans and curious newcomers closer to the sport’s top stars – who are still very accessible today – and we’re doing that”, said Carraro, highlighting the initiative of the four courts split between champion training sessions and amateur play. “Rome will grow even more when we have top-level Italian pairs”. How long will that take? “Within four years, Italy will achieve great results in both the men’s and women’s divisions”, continued the FIP president. “There are promising young players, and the Italian federation is supporting them with concrete projects,” just as has happened with Italian tennis.

Then there’s the Olympic dream: “But I’m not making any predictions”, Carraro reiterated. “Today, we meet all the criteria to become an Olympic sport. But we must respect the work of the IOC, which doesn’t just look at things on paper. I believe that working this way, with events that improve day by day, is the best path toward becoming a five-ring sport. The IOC is evolving and understands that including padel is a good opportunity, as it is already broadcast in 242 countries”.