Born the June 22, 1999 in Sète, in the south of France, Corentin Pagano embodies an atypical trajectory. Today padel coach in Cap d'Agde at the French Touch Academy, he looks back on a journey made up of decisive turns and strong personal convictions.

A youth punctuated by tennis

It is by the tennis, a sport practiced by his father, that it all began. At a very young age, Corentin spent his days on the fields: "I went to all his training sessions to play on my own," he confides. He practices this sport from 5 to 19 years old, however chaining the ankle injuries (dislocations, sprains, etc.), until he had to stop because of his university studies and travel constraints.

But from adolescence, another vocation emerged: transmettre. In 15 years, he assists his club's coach at the tennis school. "I've always had this drive and this desire to see people progress, whatever their level," he explains.

The union of medicine and sport

Coming from a family in the medical field, Corentin seeks to reconcile his two passions. He naturally chose the university path by joining a STAPS degree, specialized in Adapted Physical Activity (APA)This discipline allows people with physical, mental or social limitations to be supported through movement. He validates his license then moves towards a master's degree in this field.

But he quickly realized that this course no longer suited him: the health crisis linked to the Covid, family distance, and training more focused on project management take it away from its initial vocation, being in the field, with patients.

The padel trigger

This is when a friend introduces him to padel, a rapidly expanding sport. It was a revelation. He then decided to change course and to fully invest himself in this new path. He left his master's degree and enrolled in the Padel TFP, a professional diploma, which he is pursuing in apprenticeship in Sète Padel Club, his favorite club.

"Everything went well, I validated the diploma and I devoted myself to it fully," he says. The year of his training, he reached the 327th place in the French ranking. Today, although he plays fewer tournaments, he retains the pleasure of the game, while seeking to progress, both as a player and as coach.

The desire to pass on, again and again

This is at Thézan-Monplaisir that he began working as a coach, before returning to his native region: "As a good Sète native, I had to be close by, ahah," he jokes. He thus joined the Cap d'Agde, where he now officiates alongside Mickaël Sempere, with whom he spent his training, and Mario Cordero, whom he thanks for the trust placed in him.

Corentin has found “his place in Cape Town for a year” and there is no doubt that you will see him on the slopes very soon!

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.