Women have the right to participate in the men's P500s and they benefit from it, as we saw this weekend with the victory of the Authier/Pothier pair at Echirolles.

Last weekend there was a P500 at Football Time, the multi-sports club with three tracks in padel located not far from Grenoble. And for the very first tournament of this category organized in this club, it is an “international” pair, mixed and well known from the Lyon club Esprit padel who prevailed!

The club where it all started for Lucile

A little surprise, especially when you know that Lucile Pothier, back from Dubai, was initially not to participate in the competition: “I had decided to take a break after the World Championships and before the P2000 in Toulouse to recharge the batteries. Then finally, in the course of a conversation, we decided with François, a little at the last moment, to register for this tournament.

It must be said that this club has a particular flavor for her: “This is the place where I discovered the padel for the first time in 2018! I hadn't caught on at all, probably because I had played with tennis players who played very fast. When I think about it today, it's nice to have won a tournament here!"

The public made the trip during this first P500 at Foot Time

“Put into practice what he teaches me in training”

And it's also a first in the men's P500, for her who is already a regular at men's tournaments:”I had already participated in men's tournaments, sometimes I play with my boyfriend when women's tournaments are hard to find.

It was the second tournament I did with François, we had already done a P500 at All In Padel, where we finished 3rd in March 2022. At the time, I had just moved to the right, François had offered to do a tournament together so that he could guide me on the field in real matches: give me tactical advice, game plans to be made according to the opponents, areas to avoid, the management of certain points in the more or less tense moments of a match, etc. It went very well, I learned a lot, and it was felt in the tournaments that followed.

So we decided to repeat the experience this weekend. We weren't looking to win points or anything else, we did it together to put into practice what he teaches me in training and above all to see my position on the pitch, the choices I make at certain times. in the pressure of a match. It was a recovery tournament, with a view to preparing for the last P2000 of the season in Toulouse and trying to correct what didn't work in my last competitions."

Elodie Invernon lucile pothier world smash
Lucile Pothier and Élodie Invernon in Dubai

“Playing more liberated next to François”

“It's 'easy' when you have a player like François by your side. A slightly average ball or a missed zone can quickly put his partner in difficulty, but he is able to get out of improbable defenses and find perfect zones. In general, when he has to make a crazy defense, it's because the shot before I didn't play very well! But inevitably, when you know that you have a solid player like that at your side, you allow yourself to play more liberated, to try more things and to dare more shots that you wouldn't necessarily try in others. competitions."

Surprise of the final victory

“I didn't think we were going to get this result! We had a great final (5/7 6/3 6/4 against Poirieux (91) / Rouleau (250)), battling to the end! The final victory is certainly satisfying, but above all I was very happy with the way this tournament was won: fun on the pitch, I managed to put in place things that we had seen in training, and above all I still learned a lot! I thank François because it is not given to everyone to have his coach who travels and participates in tournaments with him (and especially a big thank you to him for having remained zen, while sometimes I was a little l contrary to what he told me!)."

The player ends with another dedication, to Foot Time this time: “The leaders had been talking about organizing a tournament of this level for a while, we can say that it was a great success. They are passionate and very invested in the padel from the beginning. Clément Arcangeli played a major role in the development of padel in this club by sharing his experience as a player!”

On the club side, thanks go to the partners “Ekipe Architecture et Travaux and Jean Lain Mobilités without whom this tournament would not have taken place”, But also “to all the participants who made this tournament a success and to the large crowd that came all weekend: you were fantastic!” Without forgetting a little word for the French international: “This tournament will have had the merit of demonstrating to everyone that at padel the intelligence and dexterity of girls can rival the power of men. Thank you Lucile!”

Team Padel May

Team Padel Magazine tries to offer you since 2013 the best of padel, but also surveys, analyzes to try to understand the world of padel. From the game to the politics of our sport, Padel Magazine is at your service.

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