Back to the interview with Christian Collange, President of the PACA league padel committee, who talks to us in particular about the consequences of the appointment of Gilles Moretton to the post of President of the FFT for French padel.

A new term as president of the PACA league

Franck Binisti: Christian, were you re-elected last week as head of the PACA league padel commission?

Christian Collange: Yes absolutely, we made the new elections following the renewal of Jean-Claude Bousteau's list, so automatically the commission was set up and I was renewed for the next 4 years for a second “mandate” in quotation marks at the head of the presidency of the PACA padel commission. I was promised a nice team, the team has been validated, and now all you have to do is work!

Strong experience in tennis

Franck Binisti: We know that you were part of Gilles Moretton's team with Christophe Lesage, today what is the next step to see this padel program deployed in France?

Christian Collange: "As you know, I got involved fairly quickly with Gilles Moretton and Arnaud Clément's team for several reasons. Although we must not forget what has been done well for padel, for me it was not enough., otherwise I wouldn't have been in the new team! ”

“I was completely seduced since really the principles that I saw on the Gilles Moretton's program the overall program (padel and tennis), completely matched what I aspired to and it brought what I did not find in the old team. I was clear right away, I committed to them, so we talked about padel of course, it is what I am most passionate about today, even if I have a tennis past: I am BE2, I was a tennis player, I was at -2/6, I was a tennis teacher… Tennis Padel Soleil For a long time, I worked in Cap d'Ail, I set up the ITF cadet tennis tournament, I worked with Michel Borfiga and Louis Borfiga who are the people who trained me in tennis. So I have a tennis background.”

christian collange binisti bullpadel

Change of course at the FFT

Franck Binisti: You were talking about good things before talking about the future, it is true that you do not hide what has happened in recent years: what would you credit the old team?

Christian Collange: "It's true that we shouldn't forget about Covid, which has blocked everyone a bit, but apart from the Covid period, I was on the general commission, so we still worked, we talked about padel. I wasn't always agreed with what was done but there were things done. Good or not good. There was help for padel, FFT Padel Tour. In my opinion it was done clumsily, there were more urgent things than the high level. We must not ignore the base of padel, the clubs. The high level is important, but it should not be the tree that hides the forest. "

“At the level of the PACA league, we have launched a lot of things: youth circuit, detections, team matches, etc. We launched a lot of things. But I would have liked there to be a link with the Federation for it to be implemented at the national level. We worked a bit by clans, it's a shame. What also bothered me was that the governance was too top-down. Private clubs have been forgotten, we only went to see them to organize competitions at home. “

“I found myself completely in the speech of the new team. Now we will have to put it in place, but already when the speech is good at the start, we are on the right wavelength. ”

The projects of the new team

Franck Binisti: What will be put in place in the coming weeks? What are the main projects for the FFT?

Christian Collange: “The program will be decided in mid-March. Gilles Moretton, Arnaud Clément and the whole team will decide how they want to work with padel. There will be a team dedicated to padel, that's for sure. The urgent thing at the FFT today is to help the clubs, and prepare for Roland-Garros.

For me, the most important thing is to listen to the clubs, especially the private ones. We have a lot to learn from them, and we shouldn't just use them when we need them to do tournaments. We need to go to them and bring the padel family together in France. It is also necessary to bring together a padel team with really important contacts. 

It takes a padel license to be able to identify the padel player, that he feels that it is a discipline in its own right, and not a derivative discipline. Maybe a padel license, a tennis license, and a license for both, I don't know, we need to have the general opinion and see with the team in place, but in any case there needs to be an evolution of the current license. 

Then, the teaching of padel, a diploma will come out, we need to structure the base of padel, that we have a real unit of training of padel in France.”

A new FFT Padel Tour ?

Franck Binisti: Rethinking the FFT Padel Tour, what does this imply ?

Christian Collange: "The circuit FFT Padel Tour was for me a very good idea, but for me the important thing is the development. This circuit has the merit of existing but it would be necessary that each tournament is the celebration of the club and the league that host it. For me it is necessary to help the clubs, so that they are winners. And why not combine that with competitions with other categories, put the young people in the spotlight, and an awards ceremony at the end with everyone. ”

Franck Binisti: Public places only for exhibitions, for promotion around padel?

Christian Collange: “Public places should be used to show padel, to create entertainment for young people, seniors, for the whole padel crowd. Maybe hold the final (of the P2000) in the public square, and everything else for entertainment. Sweden and Italy are exploding thanks to VIPs who have popularized padel, including exhibitions with footballers. We need personalities to promote padel.

In France, we could bring in Didier Deschamps, Flo Thauvin or tennis players in exhibitions with the best French padel players to introduce padel.

Follow in the footsteps of Italy and Sweden?

Franck Binisti: Has France missed the boat compared to countries like Sweden or Italy in the development of padel?

Christian Collange: “In France, the private sector does not feel helped, we are in a very complicated situation in addition. In Sweden, I think that the structures are more helped, better received. It is difficult to take a private structure with all that that implies in France. It is necessary find bridges between the private and public sectors, to serve the development of padel. I have always been unhappy with what was happening with the private sector! ”

 

To find the interview in its entirety:

 

Xan is a fan of padel. But also of rugby! And his posts are just as punchy. Physical trainer of several padel players, he finds atypical posts or deals with current topics. He also gives you some advice to develop your physique for padel. Clearly, he imposes his offensive style as on the padel court!

On the same subject

Tags