January 12, 2025 • 7 mins
Padel is considered the world's fastest growing racquet sport, and now Wellingtonians have the chance to play in New Zealand's first premium padel facility.
The indoor centre in Kilbirnie features four premium courts, with doors open to padel competitors of all ages and abilities.
The centre's founder, Luke Neira, joined Adam Cooper to explain more about the sport and what the new centre offers.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
News looks at me on the All Sport Breakfast six
to seven. Well, there's a new sport out that's been
called the world's fastest growing racket sport. It's called paddle
pad e l Smaller rackets than tennis, but a bit
of a hybrid of tennis and squash now that helps
set up the sport. New Zealand's first paddle house has
just opened in Wellington. Luke Norton, the founder of the
new center, morning toier LOOKEW how's it all been going
(00:21):
since you opened up?
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Mate? Yeah, money Adam, It's it's actually really nice. We've
had a lot of people coming through, a lot of
people showing interests, had emails, had some phone calls, people
following up on Instagram, messaging nocence on Instagram. Yeah, it's
just it's been taken really really well, which I knew
it would because Goington is that city we're outgoing like
to try new things. You know, we're into our fitness,
(00:43):
so you know, it was it was always going to
be well well received in my opinion.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
So just to give our listeners some background into the
sport itself from from me looking at it sort of
on YouTube and various things. It looks as though it's
a mix of tennis and squash. Your use of the
walls around the court as much as the lines on
the court, Is that a fair assumption.
Speaker 2 (01:04):
Yeah, pretty much. Primarily it does have a lot more
tennis focus on it, whereas it has tennis scoring. You
serve diagonally as per tennis, but then towards the back
of the court you have glass, which then brings the
squash element into it then, so you can play off
the glass. Then there's also this fence on the side,
so once the ball goes over the net, bouncers on
(01:25):
the court can play off the fence as well, which
obviously gives another dimension of how to react to the
ball and what the ball is going to do next.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
Why do you think the sport has taken off around
the world, though.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
Well, that's a great question. I think it's primarily because
of its easy to pick up. Anyone can play it,
regardless of age, regardless of the ability. It's a smaller
racket with a smaller swing, which means your margin for
error just comes down. So I think because of that
and accessibility, it becomes a lot more enjoyable and a
(01:55):
lot more fun for people. To be able to play
with friends, relatives, loved ones. It's just a game for all.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
It's people like me who swing a tennis racket quite
often and get frustrated. Right, that room for error aspect
is it's a great way for people to just integrate
into a sport without getting too worried about not being
as good as the person you're playing against or anything
like that.
Speaker 2 (02:15):
Yeah, because in this game, you will always be a leveler.
So for example, if we played together and you will
a lot better than that, then I would recognize that
I need to get you away from the net. And
then if you realize that I'm better at the back
of the court, then you would want to bring me
towards the front of the court. So it is really
much a thinking game, and you really have to think
about how where I should put the ball to move
(02:36):
my opponent around, to create space around the court to
finish a point you reckon.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
It's not difficult for beginners to pick up a racket,
have it a couple of games, and be at a
pretty adequate standard that would make them enjoy the sport.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Yeah, every pretty much everybody that's come through the doors
and has played has left here saying we will be
back soon. So I'd say that's a pretty good advertisement
for the game itself. Again, it's very simple to pick up.
There's not many rules and yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:05):
Yes, great, yeah, great, sounds like it's been great, So
great to hear it's been well received and there is
a whole range of ages, you know, athletic abilities that
have come through and checked it out so far.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Yeah, we've had professional athletes, we've had children, we've had
older people and yeah, everyone's everyone plays it the way
that they want to play it, and there's a right
or wrong way to play as long as you're enjoying
what you're doing. That there's a primary aspect.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
So we know there's been a couple of the courts
set up, mainly up in Auckland. You know, I think
there's been a showcase court at the Tennis But what
you've created in Wellington is the real deal, isn't it.
It's an actual house.
Speaker 2 (03:44):
Yeah, yeah, it is. It's primarily it's only paddle, so
everyone that comes here comes here and plays paddle. And
we have three doubles courts which are already finished, and
we have a single court which is almost finished. So
by the time we had to open down the twenty
fifth of January. Everything will be complete waiting for the
council to give as alcohol license and it's fully functioning.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
So you know, once it's all completed, what kind of
you know, activity will be there to be memberships? Will
it be or people playing different different leagues like people
play you know, into cricket and door netball with their
colleagues that kind of stuff.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
Yeah, all of the above. We're looking at a few
different options in terms of corporate leagues, just general public leagues,
squashed tennis, club leagues, like, lots of different options. They
always run some tournaments will do like like lucky dip
type tournaments, so you come in everyone needs is a
draw and you get given a partner. Just things to trying,
(04:37):
you know, to broaden the community and get more people
playing and meeting new people and just generally just having fun.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
How do you find people often cope with with picking
up a new sport that I'm sure there's always a
little bit of initial frustration with with maybe their own
abilities if they're not not used to it right, But
you know, people generally patient and wanting to give things
a good decent crack.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Yeah, they are Yeah, if everyone that's come through, we've
given tips and how to how to hold the racket,
what sort of swing you should be doing, sort of
where you should stand and just trust the glass. People
don't really want to let the ball go past them,
whereas it's part of the game. So just trying to
encourage that sort of thing. So the learning aspect continues
(05:19):
to carry on.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
Is it fair to say it's a bit of a
competitive market because obviously you got Pickable now, which uses
similar skills. A lot of people in Wellington do love
their tennis as well, so you're bringing in a new
sport that's quite similar to others.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Yeah, I wouldn't say it's we're not competing. I think
there's room for all of them to be in the
same place at the same time. I know in the
US they've started doing paddle courts. They have pickable lines
included inside the pattle courts, so they have the flexibility
to do both, which which is quite interesting. But there
are similarities in pickable and pad all in terms of
(05:53):
how you move with your partner all the time. And
then obviously you know tennis is the god of all
the sports because the spirital came from and squashed with
the back of the court on the peddle court is
similar to that. So there is definitely fundamentals from each
of these sports that can be used in other sports.
Speaker 1 (06:12):
Awesome, And you've had a court open at the AASP
Classic for paddle over the past week, at a couple
of weeks at the tennis in Auckland. What's the response been,
like a few people showing a bit of interest and
taking up the sport.
Speaker 2 (06:23):
Yeah, we haven't really had anyone come in and say,
well we saw on the news about the pedals caught
up at the ASP. A couple of friends have mentioned it.
But yeah, people, I've heard someone coming today and they've
watched the show on Netflix, which is a Spanish show
and then they were playing paddle in there and they
were like, oh, that looks interesting, so they give us
a call. They came in and had a.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
Game wonderful and you guys saught everyone out with gare
When you come in, we consider hire that with your
head in there and sort of get all the right
equipment and stuff.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Yeah, that's right. So at the moment we have that
we have a special rate at the moment, which is
sixty dollars per hour for per court and that includes
your racket and your balls. Yeah, well all yes, doors,
come and spend some water and have some fun.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
Great and two weeks away for people listening in the
Wellington area or wider region, a big open day. What
can we expect there, people to can come in and
sort of really get amongst it.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
Yeah, it'll be a day where people can come try
it out, try different records, play with different people and
win some spot prizes to be there's a lot of
things going on wonderful.
Speaker 1 (07:23):
Well, it's exciting and great to hear. Look, the response
has been great so far and here's hoping it keeps
growing at a great pace. Sounds like great fun to
get involved, and I'm really keen to come along and
have a hit. So might catch you down there in
the next couple of weeks. But thanks for your time,
all the very best as you continue to build the
very exciting first paddle house in New Zealand. Looke, appreciate
your time. Thanks to cool For more from news Talks,
(07:45):
there'd be listen live on air or online and keep
our shows with you wherever you go with our podcast
on iHeartRadio.
News looks at me on the All Sport Breakfast six
to seven. Well, there's a new sport out that's been
called the world's fastest growing racket sport. It's called paddle
pad e l Smaller rackets than tennis, but a bit
of a hybrid of tennis and squash now that helps
set up the sport. New Zealand's first paddle house has
just opened in Wellington. Luke Norton, the founder of the
new center, morning toier LOOKEW how's it all been going
(00:21):
since you opened up?
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Mate? Yeah, money Adam, It's it's actually really nice. We've
had a lot of people coming through, a lot of
people showing interests, had emails, had some phone calls, people
following up on Instagram, messaging nocence on Instagram. Yeah, it's
just it's been taken really really well, which I knew
it would because Goington is that city we're outgoing like
to try new things. You know, we're into our fitness,
(00:43):
so you know, it was it was always going to
be well well received in my opinion.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
So just to give our listeners some background into the
sport itself from from me looking at it sort of
on YouTube and various things. It looks as though it's
a mix of tennis and squash. Your use of the
walls around the court as much as the lines on
the court, Is that a fair assumption.
Speaker 2 (01:04):
Yeah, pretty much. Primarily it does have a lot more
tennis focus on it, whereas it has tennis scoring. You
serve diagonally as per tennis, but then towards the back
of the court you have glass, which then brings the
squash element into it then, so you can play off
the glass. Then there's also this fence on the side,
so once the ball goes over the net, bouncers on
(01:25):
the court can play off the fence as well, which
obviously gives another dimension of how to react to the
ball and what the ball is going to do next.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
Why do you think the sport has taken off around
the world, though.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
Well, that's a great question. I think it's primarily because
of its easy to pick up. Anyone can play it,
regardless of age, regardless of the ability. It's a smaller
racket with a smaller swing, which means your margin for
error just comes down. So I think because of that
and accessibility, it becomes a lot more enjoyable and a
(01:55):
lot more fun for people. To be able to play
with friends, relatives, loved ones. It's just a game for all.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
It's people like me who swing a tennis racket quite
often and get frustrated. Right, that room for error aspect
is it's a great way for people to just integrate
into a sport without getting too worried about not being
as good as the person you're playing against or anything
like that.
Speaker 2 (02:15):
Yeah, because in this game, you will always be a leveler.
So for example, if we played together and you will
a lot better than that, then I would recognize that
I need to get you away from the net. And
then if you realize that I'm better at the back
of the court, then you would want to bring me
towards the front of the court. So it is really
much a thinking game, and you really have to think
about how where I should put the ball to move
(02:36):
my opponent around, to create space around the court to
finish a point you reckon.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
It's not difficult for beginners to pick up a racket,
have it a couple of games, and be at a
pretty adequate standard that would make them enjoy the sport.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Yeah, every pretty much everybody that's come through the doors
and has played has left here saying we will be
back soon. So I'd say that's a pretty good advertisement
for the game itself. Again, it's very simple to pick up.
There's not many rules and yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:05):
Yes, great, yeah, great, sounds like it's been great, So
great to hear it's been well received and there is
a whole range of ages, you know, athletic abilities that
have come through and checked it out so far.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Yeah, we've had professional athletes, we've had children, we've had
older people and yeah, everyone's everyone plays it the way
that they want to play it, and there's a right
or wrong way to play as long as you're enjoying
what you're doing. That there's a primary aspect.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
So we know there's been a couple of the courts
set up, mainly up in Auckland. You know, I think
there's been a showcase court at the Tennis But what
you've created in Wellington is the real deal, isn't it.
It's an actual house.
Speaker 2 (03:44):
Yeah, yeah, it is. It's primarily it's only paddle, so
everyone that comes here comes here and plays paddle. And
we have three doubles courts which are already finished, and
we have a single court which is almost finished. So
by the time we had to open down the twenty
fifth of January. Everything will be complete waiting for the
council to give as alcohol license and it's fully functioning.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
So you know, once it's all completed, what kind of
you know, activity will be there to be memberships? Will
it be or people playing different different leagues like people
play you know, into cricket and door netball with their
colleagues that kind of stuff.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
Yeah, all of the above. We're looking at a few
different options in terms of corporate leagues, just general public leagues,
squashed tennis, club leagues, like, lots of different options. They
always run some tournaments will do like like lucky dip
type tournaments, so you come in everyone needs is a
draw and you get given a partner. Just things to trying,
(04:37):
you know, to broaden the community and get more people
playing and meeting new people and just generally just having fun.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
How do you find people often cope with with picking
up a new sport that I'm sure there's always a
little bit of initial frustration with with maybe their own
abilities if they're not not used to it right, But
you know, people generally patient and wanting to give things
a good decent crack.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Yeah, they are Yeah, if everyone that's come through, we've
given tips and how to how to hold the racket,
what sort of swing you should be doing, sort of
where you should stand and just trust the glass. People
don't really want to let the ball go past them,
whereas it's part of the game. So just trying to
encourage that sort of thing. So the learning aspect continues
(05:19):
to carry on.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
Is it fair to say it's a bit of a
competitive market because obviously you got Pickable now, which uses
similar skills. A lot of people in Wellington do love
their tennis as well, so you're bringing in a new
sport that's quite similar to others.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Yeah, I wouldn't say it's we're not competing. I think
there's room for all of them to be in the
same place at the same time. I know in the
US they've started doing paddle courts. They have pickable lines
included inside the pattle courts, so they have the flexibility
to do both, which which is quite interesting. But there
are similarities in pickable and pad all in terms of
(05:53):
how you move with your partner all the time. And
then obviously you know tennis is the god of all
the sports because the spirital came from and squashed with
the back of the court on the peddle court is
similar to that. So there is definitely fundamentals from each
of these sports that can be used in other sports.
Speaker 1 (06:12):
Awesome, And you've had a court open at the AASP
Classic for paddle over the past week, at a couple
of weeks at the tennis in Auckland. What's the response been,
like a few people showing a bit of interest and
taking up the sport.
Speaker 2 (06:23):
Yeah, we haven't really had anyone come in and say,
well we saw on the news about the pedals caught
up at the ASP. A couple of friends have mentioned it.
But yeah, people, I've heard someone coming today and they've
watched the show on Netflix, which is a Spanish show
and then they were playing paddle in there and they
were like, oh, that looks interesting, so they give us
a call. They came in and had a.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
Game wonderful and you guys saught everyone out with gare
When you come in, we consider hire that with your
head in there and sort of get all the right
equipment and stuff.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Yeah, that's right. So at the moment we have that
we have a special rate at the moment, which is
sixty dollars per hour for per court and that includes
your racket and your balls. Yeah, well all yes, doors,
come and spend some water and have some fun.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
Great and two weeks away for people listening in the
Wellington area or wider region, a big open day. What
can we expect there, people to can come in and
sort of really get amongst it.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
Yeah, it'll be a day where people can come try
it out, try different records, play with different people and
win some spot prizes to be there's a lot of
things going on wonderful.
Speaker 1 (07:23):
Well, it's exciting and great to hear. Look, the response
has been great so far and here's hoping it keeps
growing at a great pace. Sounds like great fun to
get involved, and I'm really keen to come along and
have a hit. So might catch you down there in
the next couple of weeks. But thanks for your time,
all the very best as you continue to build the
very exciting first paddle house in New Zealand. Looke, appreciate
your time. Thanks to cool For more from news Talks,
(07:45):
there'd be listen live on air or online and keep
our shows with you wherever you go with our podcast
on iHeartRadio.
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