The beautiful story of the "Hangar", club of padel in Reunion

Build a complex of padel with his friends, it makes you dream. Antoine, Cyrille and Colin imagined it, and did it!

This is the beautiful story of the day, that of the Hangar, club of padel in the meeting. A project designed and produced by Antoine, Cyril and Colin, three friends from racquet sports who have recently become avid padel. Their goal, to create a club where you can play all year round without worrying about rain, wind or sun! “It remained to find the most important in the success of a sports center project: the managers of the club, whom we wanted to be warm and friendly. Passionate and experienced people who animate the place and make players want to spend as much time as possible at the Hangar,” says Antoine. A project which seemed utopian but which will end up being carried out with the arrival of Baptiste Maître, current champion of padel from La Réunion and Jean Nouaux, a specialist in sports events. The Hangar team is then created.

A rebirth for a building steeped in history

The project has potential, the General Management and the teams of CBo Territoria notice it and see the opportunity to revive a building banner located at the entrance to the old sugar factory in the La Mare district. It is an old building, which closed its doors in 1981. At the time, around thirty people were manufacturing and storing bagapan. This building material, made from bagasse (residues from the extraction of sugar from cane), was marketed in the form of woody panels that served as partitions in many houses in Reunion in the 70s. "We are happy to unite the modernity of a new generation sport with the history of a building that has lived with generations of Reunionese for 50 years, which makes this club unique in its kind", rejoices Antoine. An old hangar, full of history but which above all has a space of 1500m2: ideal for building a complex of padel !

A substantial evolution

The club has recorded more than 1000 players registered on the Hangar Application. This application has been a real development asset. It allows players to book directly on their phone, find partners, register for competitions or even buy equipment in the proshop. The club has decided to focus on women with the creation of a women's division. He counts today 20 players who regularly come to train. The Hangar also plans to introduce young people to padel with the creation of a school of padel et a center of hope for young talents. Today, a few young people aged 18 to 25 come to train at the club, but a project of actions directed with town halls and schools to set up special offers for students could help attract even more young people. .

The club organized more than 20 FFT tournaments over the year, with a circuit of ten P25s, four P500s, a Master and a few P100s/P250s. The Hangar is constantly animated. The club launched the “Domingos”, an event that takes place every Sunday, with a friendly format that can be summed up in three words: Padel, Food and Music. “In our club concept, we imagined both the sporting and social aspects, and that's why people like to meet at the Hangar for a drink or work on a corner of the table. It is a place of life before being a sporting place”. During holiday periods, courses are offered on the application to allow players to progress quickly over a week.

Digital at the heart of the Hangar

The Hangar Application offers players a complete service. Reservation of pitches, creation of matches, an e-commerce site, everything goes. Recently, the club set up a live video recording system, thanks to NGTV. Players will be able to follow and review their points after matches, this tool will allow coaches to analyze and correct private sessions, but also to broadcast matches during tournaments. “The coaching sessions using the NGTV tool with our partner SFR, this is a first in Reunion. This will allow players to review their lessons and identify areas for improvement live with their coaches,” adds Antoine.

Projects for 2023

Le Hangar wants to continue its momentum and offer the best experience padel possible. Developments at the club are planned with the creation of several seats to attend the tournaments, but also the development of areas for the players. The club also wishes to collaborate with other clubs to develop the padel with the league, with the aim of creating events in Reunion in the future and attracting the best players.

“The climate is magnificent in Reunion, but it can also be sometimes intense and capricious, between sun, rain and wind. So much so that it is sometimes difficult to maintain a game in the best outdoor playing conditions. The structure therefore makes it possible to play in any weather, all year round and the children can enjoy the place in complete safety. We promote the padel for all and mix the levels », concludes Antoine!

Vincent Gallie

A fan of oval football, round ball but also racket sports, he was stung by the padel during his adolescence in Galicia. As comfortable in front of the camera as behind a microphone, Vince will be able to bring his vision and expertise as a fan of the little yellow ball.