TalkSPORT host Simon Jordan, ex-England rugby union captain Chris Robshaw and Olympic medal-winning badminton star Gail Emms MBE were among the stars at this week’s glittering Pro Am Padel Tour debut at Roehampton Club.
Simon was crowned the men’s champion, with Rugby World Cup winner Vicky Fleetwood (replaced halfway through the event by Georgie Hodge, Head of Women’s Football at leading soccer agency CAA Base) taking the women’s title.
In all, eight sporting celebrities each paired up with padel pros at the inaugural event at the plush south-west London venue for the first event in the high-profile Pro Am Padel Tour series, which is set to accelerate the sport’s entry into the mainstream.
Simon – former chairman of Crystal Palace FC and co-host of TalkSPORT’s weekday mid-morning radio show – teamed up with British men’s No.1 Christian Murphy. They proved an irresistible force, beating Robshaw and GB No.3 Louie Harris in the men’s final.
Simon has padel pedigree, having played the sport for many years – even sharing a court with Paris St Germain owner Nasser Al-Khelaifi during last year’s FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
In the women’s competition, ex-England rugby union star Vicky, later replaced by Georgie, partnered three-time LTA Grade One title winner Aimee Gibson. They took victory in the final over ex-Olympic silver medallist badminton player and media personality Gail Emms MBE and GB international Catherine Rose.
Carly Telford, former Chelsea and England goalkeeper, won the women’s third-place play-off in partnership with GB No.1 Tia Norton, beating Olympic gold medal-winning hockey player Sophie Bray MBE and Spaniard Carla Fito.
The event was featured on TalkSPORT’s breakfast show on Thursday 13 April, which boasts 1.2 million daily listeners.
Guest charity partner for this first event in the Tour was the Kerslake Robshaw Foundation, founded by Chris and his wife Camilla Kerslake, the Brit-nominated soprano.
Chris said: “The Foundation was delighted and honoured to get involved with this exciting new event. It was such a fun day and so exciting to try out this brilliant sport.
“Padel is definitely something I’m looking forward to getting more involved with. I was gutted to lose out to Simon Jordan in the final but it was great to throw myself around the court!”
Roehampton Club Racquets Manager Paul Lindsay said: “We were delighted to be the first host venue for a Pro Am Padel event,” said “It proved once again what more and more people in the UK are finding out for themselves – padel is simply great fun.
“Having sporting legends and celebrities of this calibre raising the sport’s profile will help raise awareness of padel even further and encourage people to try it out for themselves.”
Tucked away in a picturesque courtyard of the resplendent Roehampton Club, the club’s padel courts offered a spectacular setting to kick off the inaugural leg of the Tour.
It was played in a great spirit with plenty of banter, although the competitive edge of the former sportsmen and women had clearly not subsided in retirement! Gail Emms and Chris Robshaw in particular threw themselves around the court with gusto.
The day was superbly MC’d by Lara Davies and afterwards padel pros, celebs, sponsors and guests enjoyed the delights of the Peroni bar and delicious Mexican food supplied by Margo and Rita. They were also entertained by DJ Lindy Layton (singer on Beats International’s classic 1990 hit ‘Dub Be Good To Me’).
The day before the tournament, charity partners Rackets Cubed brought children from nearby Tolworth Primary School to the club for a fun padel session with the pros. Since January, the pupils have been part of the charity’s first padel programme.
Bob Smith, owner of event sponsors Padel Shack, commented “There’s lot of great work being done in the UK padel scene by some passionate and talented people. We have a long history of sponsoring and supporting the sport and it’s fantastic to see it growing so fast and starting to get the recognition it deserves.
“We sponsor grassroots through to elite players like Tia and Christian – both GB No.1s – and we were really pleased to get involved in the Pro Am Padel Tour as well.”
The events sponsors were Wilson, Padel Shack, Padel IQ, Matchi, Oryx Align and Eriswell Capital Management.
