Le  paddle  attracts more and more former top athletes, and the  professional cycling  is no exception. While not yet a widespread phenomenon, several individuals with cycling backgrounds are turning to padel, whether for reasons of  reconversion ,  fun  or  entrepreneurial project .

In France, two concrete examples illustrate this trend:  Flavien Dassonville  et  Pierre Roland .

 Flavien Dassonville, from cycling to the padel business 

Born in 1991 in Montdidier,  Flavien Dassonville  distinguished himself in the French peloton, notably with a title of  French junior road cycling champion in 2013  and a victory over the  Tour of Brittany 2017 .

He is now at the origin of a  indoor padel complex in Breuil-le-Sec , near Clermont (Oise), composed of  5 covered tracks (Along the Courts)

 Pierre Rolland, a self-confessed interest in padel 

Another profile well known to the general public,  Pierre Roland , old  climber of the Tour de France , stage winner on the Tour (Alpe d'Huez 2011, La Toussuire 2012) and of the  white jersey for best young player in 2011 , also shows a link with padel.

 Tadej Pogacar, a one-off interest in padel 

Among the current peloton, examples remain rare but do exist.

The two-time winner of the Tour de France,  Tadej pogacar was spotted playing padel, notably under the influence of his agent  Alex Carera .

However, this type of practice remains occasional and falls more within a framework of  leisure  or  Off-season relaxation , rather than in a training context. However, the situation is gradually evolving with the rise of  padel in Europe  and the growing interest of athletes in complementary practices

Franck Binisti

Franck Binisti discovered padel at the Club des Pyramides in 2009 in the Paris region. Since then, padel has been part of his life. You often see him touring France to cover major French padel events.

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