Abstract
The aims of the present study were to examine the fitness characteristics of professional padel players and to determine differences in physical performance regarding players’ gender. Thirty professional padel players (men: n = 15, age = 27.4 ± 6.8 years, height = 177.9 ± 4.0 cm; women: n = 15, age = 30.0 ± 4.2 years, height = 166.6 ± 4.8 cm) completed a 4-day evaluation process, including: isometric handgrip strength, sit and reach, 10 × 5 shuttle test, countermovement jump (CMJ), squat jump (SJ), Abalakov test, one-repetition maximum test (bench press, leg extension, leg curl, lat pulldowns, overhead press, and shoulder press), anthropometry and VO2 max tests. The men players had higher values in terms of weight, height, one maximum repetition, jump tests (CMJ and ABK) and VO2 max test than the women (p < 0.005). By contrast, the women had higher values for fat mass (p = 0.005; ES: 2.49). The values from this multifaceted test battery can be a useful guide for coaches regarding players’ development in future evaluations and monitoring.
Highlights
Padel is a racket sport played in pairs, which uses tennis rules and the tennis scoring system, and takes place in a rectangular area (10 × 20 m) divided into two halves by a central net, and enclosed in a synthetic glass and metal court, which allows for the use of side and back walls [1]
Our results showed that men players had higher values in terms of weight, height and VO2 max than women players, and lower values of fat mass percentage
Fat mass results are similar to those obtained in other racket sport studies [12,27,28,29], where the range obtained was between 15–19% in women players and 12–15% in men
Summary
Padel is a racket sport played in pairs, which uses tennis rules and the tennis scoring system, and takes place in a rectangular area (10 × 20 m) divided into two halves by a central net, and enclosed in a synthetic glass and metal court, which allows for the use of side and back walls [1]. A great increase in the number of participants of different genders and ages has been observed [2]. This growth has been reflected in a greater professionalisation and an increase in scientific research [3]. Movements and distance covered on the court [7,8] and game actions, such as technical or tactical parameters [3,9,10]. Padel can be defined as an intermittent sport, which combines short periods of high intensity and frequent actions (0.7–1.5 per second), with alternating rest periods, as established by the game rules (20 s) [4,11]. The strength and conditioning profile in padel includes short-distance sprints and changes
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