The Finnish final Premier Padel P2 seen by the referee: Peter Claeys

Peter Claeys, former football referee converted to football padel, refereed the Finland final Premier Padel P2 between Josemaria/Sanchez and Araujo/Ortega. It was his first experience of a final at this level and he decided to return to the journey that led him to this one.

First conclusive experiences

After having been a referee in several Premier tournaments (Riyadh, Doha, Puerto Cabello, Brussels, Seville, Bordeaux), I also had the chance to go to Rome and, for the first time, to reach the finals. I was the VAR referee in both finals.

It was a really enjoyable experience and, as I always try to improve, I continued to work like a true professional in all the assignments I received from the head referee/supervisor.

Continuous preparation

Every match I referee, I prepare well and I do it as if it were a final because, in my opinion, all the players deserve that (qualifying, first round… men and women). When I'm at VAR, I apply the same idea.

When I'm not in the refereeing chair, I try to watch as many matches as possible because at this level something "special" can happen in every match and I can learn from every situation. Observing players/coaches/colleagues also gives me the opportunity to feel/read as many situations on and off the court as possible.

In Rome, I had the opportunity to be the main referee during the men's semi-final and of course, that made me want to go further.

The importance of trust

When I received the assignment to Finland, I knew that I was going to stay until the end again, which gave me a lot of confidence and I felt that those responsible had confidence in me.

I had some interesting matches and was in the men's semi-final again. At the end of the day, we received our assignments and I was really happy to learn that I was going to be on the chair in the women's final between P. Josemaria/A. Sanchez and S. Araujo/M. Ortega.

Was I stressed? Maybe a little more than usual, but as I said before: I play every match with the same preparation, concentration and desire to do well for all the players, the coaches, the public... In addition, I already had some experience with some APT finals Padel Tour before, so I knew the tension was higher for everyone.

The final ended with a score of 6/3 6/1, but it was not as easy for the winners as it seemed. I had a VAR (service) intervention, but I think I made all the right decisions and I also gained the respect of the 4 players and the coaches.

So I think I did a good job for my first (women's) final at this level. The reward for years of hard work.

I would like to thank everyone who believed in me and in particular certain colleagues, who became friends, for their advice and constant support during matches in the different rounds (APT – WPT and Premier Padel).

Matthias Héjja-Brichard

Fan of padel, I offer you my expertise and my passion. See you soon on the slopes!