South Africa’s first multi-court indoor padel centre has opened in Paarden Eiland, Cape Town. Launched by Epic Padel, the complex – known as the Epic Padel EPICENTRE – is home to four double courts, a singles court, pro shop, restaurant, secure parking, generator, workspace with free wi-fi and change room facilities.
‘This is a game changer for padel in Cape Town,’ says Epic Padel’s Elian Wiener, who along with his co-founders Fives Futbol and Ricky Lewis, launched the business in South Africa in 2021.
‘No longer do players have to worry about the notoriously fickle Cape Town weather. At the EPICENTRE, they know that no amount of wind, rain or sun will interfere with them getting their padel fix.’
But what exactly is this sport that has become the new buzzword? A cross between tennis and squash, padel encompasses the best of these sports to create a fun, easy game. Padel is played on an astroturf court enclosed by glass walls that players can bounce the ball off. Using a bat instead of a racquet with strings further helps make padel accessible to all ages and easy to pick up.
‘The trajectory of padel over the last five to 10 years has been unbelievable Over 10,000 courts have popped up across Europe in the past two years alone. In South Africa, thousands of people have picked up the sport in the past year with new players flocking in every day,’ say Cape Padel Director, Brian Gradner.
Padel players are able to book courts at the Epic Padel EPICENTRE via the Playtomic app, while padel bats are available for rent at the venue. The centre is also offering coaching for all levels of players, as well as socials, tournaments and leagues.
Membership packages are available, which offer benefits such as a 20% discount on court bookings, access to workspace areas as well as the ability to book courts in advance for non-members.
The EPICENTRE marks the fourth padel club opened by Epic Padel, the others being the Glen Country club and Durbanville in Cape Town and Huddle Park in Johannesburg.
For Wiener, the decision to locate the indoor centre in Paarden Eiland, in the same business park as CityROCK climbing centre, was a natural one. ‘We had many requirements for the space. It needed to be centrally located and large enough to accommodate several indoor courts plus all the social spaces needed to realise our vision of what we are trying to create: a space that makes a positive impact in the community where people can get fit, have fun and build relationships,’ says Wiener.
Take a look at all the Epic Padel venues: epicpadel.co.za/venues
Pictures: Supplied
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