Although Hungary is not among the top 10 countries in the world of padel, it is hosting the second FIP Junior European Championship this year, from September 2 to 7. The tournament is taking place in the first padel club located on the Pest side of Budapest. Nearly 300 young players from 18 countries, divided into the U14, U16 and U18 age categories, compete in pairs and teams. France is well represented with a delegation of 20 players and coaches, led by FFT officials Ben Tison and Alexia Dechaume present on site.

The BVSC Padel Club, which hosts this event, is run by a Franco-Hungarian couple, Krisztina and Maxence Dutat. Krisztina, a former tennis champion in Hungary, has retrained in padel after being trained at the Academy of Padel from Madrid. She explains: "In two years, the club has managed to convert many tennis players to padelIn Hungary, there are about 5 regular players and 000 courts over the country across about twenty clubs. padel is booming, even if much work remains to be done, particularly among young people."

Padel Hungary

Krisztina is also co-president of the Hungarian Federation of Padel, in charge of developing sport among young people. The ambition of the BVSC Padel, supported by its president Kristóf Szatmáry, is to become the largest padel center in Hungary. This winter, the club plans to install a new structure with four indoor courts. Maxence Dutat explains: "The continental climate, with high temperatures in summer and sometimes below -10 degrees in winter, makes an air-conditioned facility necessary to guarantee good playing conditions throughout the year."

This ambitious project shows that Hungary is betting on the development of padel, a sport that is booming across Europe.

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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