viva forever

I’m a proud 1985 baby.

I survived the pressure of raising a Tamagotchi, the intensity of turning a cassette tape at exactly the right moment while recording the Top 40, and miraculously made it through Take That breaking up.

Thank goodness for the Newsround support line.

One other great gift of the millennial age is that I grew up believing, rightly or wrongly, that I could do anything.

Women have rights.

And votes and shit.

We can do the same jobs. We can earn equal prize money.

At least, in some places.

And there is nothing I love to see more than women championing women. Full, unbridled, pure support. Jamie Lee Curtis at an awards ceremony levels of support.

But is it always actually equal?

Are men physically stronger? On average, probably.

Are they often faster? Also probably.

Smarter?

Fuck no.

Braver?

Also no. Sorry lads.

There are differences between the genders. There’s no mistaking that.

Despite feeling as though I may have set the suffragette movement back slightly here, I think it’s okay to say we’re not all identical.

Equality doesn’t require us to pretend that we are.

And that’s no bad thing in my mind.

Padel is interesting in that respect.

I played an event at the weekend with 16 people.

Two women.

Fourteen men.

And I still did alright.

Nobody made me feel as though I shouldn’t be on court with three men. I’ve beaten men.

I do strangely get a bit more of a “av summa that” response when I ace a guy with my serve, and I’m not really sure why.

Maybe because it’s still less expected?

Padel, I’ve discovered, can be a bit of a leveller.

I went to an event celebrating two years of Soul Padel in Stockport. I had no idea what to expect or what was going on.

I didn’t know loads of people, but in a close community like that, you hear certain names on repeat.

It was a World Cup format, and I was Switzerland on account of my international padel tour.

Naturally.

First up, we were playing Australia.

These were players I’d heard of but was absolutely nowhere near the level of. One of them was the founder of Soul Padel.

The fact that this guy knew my name blew my mind.

As we walked onto court, he asked about my challenge.

“Is it true you did that?”

We had a chat, and he mentioned that he was playing with Heidi.

I’d heard the name around. He was certainly pleased (and quietly confident) that he had her as a partner.

So we had a little knock-up, and naturally, I was intrigued.

I love seeing women thrive.

It was immediately clear that Heidi could hit a ball.

I became a bit of a fangirl.

Awestruck in parts, which isn’t particularly helpful during gameplay.

Watching her play was like poetry.

I don’t even know if that makes sense to anyone, but it was beautiful.

Possibly because she’s quite literally everything I’m not.

Technically flawless - whereas I’m unhinged.

Calm - I’m screaming on the inside.

Controlled - let’s not even go there.

It was extraordinary.

Heidi got all the way to the final that night and won the whole thing after a genuinely enthralling match.

Playing against none other than her wife, Claire.

Equally talented and equally competent on court, Claire was on the other side of the net.

It was real edge-of-your-seat viewing, and I loved it.

This wasn’t a mixed tournament. Not token invitations. There were male pairs and female pairs competing alongside each other. Some really decent players.

And the women weren’t merely represented in the final.

They were on both sides of it. Rightfully. Earnt.

That is something truly amazing to see.

Soul Padel does a lot for women. There’s a Soul Sisters group, we’re in the middle of a Ladies League - spoiler; it’s not going well - and the community and WhatsApp groups…

(so many WhatsApp groups)

Are all incredibly inclusive.

As it should be.

At a certain point, the game becomes less about raw power, and more about placing the ball in difficult spots.

Using spin. Using the cage. Taking time away.

We can do that. 

I've seen girls hit pop outs.

There are no shots guys can do that we can't.

None. 

How cool is that?

Big Bear and I also played in a tournament at Buzz.

He’s an exceptional player. Some of his shots are inexplicable.

We’ve played in various tournaments together, and usually, I’m by far the weak link.

I love playing with Bear. I feel free, alive, and I’m always having a good time.

I’d take on Tapia with him.

I actually would.

But that’s because, as I’ve mentioned before, I am deeply deluded.

It can’t be a lot of fun for him all of the time. Sorry again, suffragettes, but I do feel like it’s harder for us to beat two guys.

So when we came up against another mixed pair in a tournament, we both went in thinking we had a solid chance.

In a mixed match, I’d always back us. Unless one of us was in a paddy.

By “us,” I obviously mean him.

But regardless, I felt like we were in with a shout.

Anyway, on we went against this mixed pair.

We’d already played one match, so we went straight into play-to-serve and off we went.

The courts were recorded at this event. I’ve watched the footage back, and you can literally see the moment Big Bear and I look at each other and subliminally realise we’re both thinking the same thing.

"FUCK."

The first serve?

I didn’t even see it.

Debbie is a hell of a player.

She’s got pedigree in badminton, I believe, but obviously, I didn’t know that going in.

The rounds were about 15 minutes.

We lost 8–0. 

In 15 minutes.

I’ve never seen anyone smash that much. It made my head spin.

I was under so much pressure to get the ball back that all I could do was send it up high - only for Debs to send it crashing straight back down to Earth.

Extraordinary.

Humbling.

But wow.

The Spice Girls would be so proud.

I’ve since discovered that she’s so accomplished she plays in LTA tournaments.

I can believe it.

And I love to see it.

Now, everyone plays for different reasons.

I get that.

Not everyone wants to take on Tapia. Some people are quite happy knocking a ball back and forth while shooting the breeze.

It isn’t really about being the best.

What I wanted to share is how lovely I find the inclusivity.

We’re not fighting to be part of the conversation anymore.

We just are.

Seeing women represented in padel, and watching them thrive, is a beautiful thing.

And I am here for it.

Always a fan girl. 

Viva Forever x