Empower Padel’s Women Leaders in Sport event for International Women’s Day saw its attendance double from last year.
Over 160 guests gathered at the prestigious Hurlingham Club in west London to mix with other padel players and entrepreneurs.
Organised by Empower Padel founder Pepita Stonor in partnership with The Hurlingham Club Foundation and Evelyn Partners, the main event featured a panel discussion with four women leading and breaking barriers in sport.
Hosted by Sky Sports broadcaster Di Stewart, the panel featured Sandi Procter, former LTA President, Caroline Buckland, Group Director of Growth Marketing at Red Bull Racing and Red Bull Technology, and Aimee Fuller, two-time Olympian and broadcaster.
All four women initially met Pep on a padel court, demonstrating how the accessible and social nature of the sport is connecting women from across the sporting world.
During the discussion, the speakers reflected on their journeys into leadership, the barriers women still face in sport, and the importance of encouraging greater female participation in all types of sport.
Caroline addressed the importance of participation when developing female leaders in sport.
She said: “Whilst it’s great that we’re seeing lots of people playing padel on social media, that doesn’t always translate into governance or strategic conversations at board level.
“The more women that we can encourage to pick up a racket, will hopefully stay in the sport.”
Although Caroline works in the F1 industry, she is an accomplished padel player, ranked 37 in the UK. She won a PADEL HUB Crawley tournament the day after Empower Padel’s event.
Caroline’s points reflect Empower Padel’s wider mission to increase women’s participation in padel on all levels of the sport.
While padel is growing globally, with 40% of players being women, this level of participation is not yet reflected in the UK.
Pep explained at the end of the panel that padel is still a nascent sport in the UK, which does mean it has the opportunity to be completely equitable from the beginning. However, she emphasised that there is still work to be done.
Pep said: “If you look at some of the stats from FIP, only 29% of pro players are women, and 28% of juniors are girls.”
To address this gap and ensure more girls have access to the sport, Empower Padel runs initiatives such as the Hurlingham Club Foundation’s Girls’ Racquets Programme, with proceeds from the event supporting the initiative.
Now in its second year, the weekly programme provides padel and squash coaching, equipment and mentorship to girls from Lady Margaret School at the Hurlingham Club, led by Empower Padel coaches.
Since its launch in 2024, the programme has supported over 200 girls, with teachers noticing increased attendance levels, improved resilience and perseverance and development of leadership skills.
Elle Bernhardt, PE Teacher at Lady Margaret School, said: “As the girls’ PE teacher, it has been incredibly rewarding to see the girls thrive in a new environment.
“The coaching at The Hurlingham Club has brought out resilience, teamwork and self-belief in students who might not traditionally view themselves as ‘sporty’. The impact has extended well beyond these sessions and into their wider PE engagement.”
The brunch launches a month-long series of sold-out Empower Padel events celebrating International Women’s Day, which kicked off on Sunday with a 48-player women’s tournament at Padium in collaboration with Babolat and Padium.
On Friday 13 March, Empower Padel’s 40-player event will take place at PADEL HUB Slough in support of the Sweaty Betty Foundation, as well as the final International Women’s Day tournament on Sunday 29 March.
Pep said: “This year’s theme perfectly reflects what we are trying to achieve – not only increasing participation but creating pathways for women to lead, inspire and support others through sport.
“Many teenage girls drop out of sport because they struggle to find something accessible and social. Padel offers exactly that, and we are proud to help young girls discover a sport they can enjoy for life. We are incredibly grateful to our partners and supporters who make this initiative possible.”
