Engel & Völkers invests in padel and sponsors vice-champion Henrique Orge

Engel & Völkers Faro-Tavira has decided to invest in padel, sponsoring the padel court at Quinta das Raposeiras in Santa Bárbara de Nexe, and the young talent from the Algarve, Henrique Orge, who became this year's National Sub-18 Padel Vice-Champion.

"I started playing tennis very early, around the age of two, as my father [Ângelo Orge] is a tennis coach, he always encourajed me to play. So, after a while, I switched to padel because it was a sport that moved me more than tennis," he explains, referring to the current director of the Sports Center at Quinta das Raposeiras.

And how is padel different from tennis? "I think padel is a much more social sport, more appealing to more people; it's much easier to play and learn, so it captivates more people. Many tennis courts have replaced their tennis courts with padel courts," he states, attempting to explain the explosion of this sport.

Padel is a racket sport played in pairs that originated in Mexico in the 1970s. It is experiencing rapid growth worldwide, in Portugal, and of course in the Algarve. Nationally, there are more than 200,000 practitioners, and by the end of 2022, there were over 300 clubs where you could play. The one at Quinta das Raposeiras in Santa Bárbara de Nexe, Faro, is one of them.

At 18 years old, and at M1 level, Orge considers himself more of an attacker than a defensive player. Among the names he admires on the national level are Afonso Fazendeiro and Peu Araújo. And at the international level? Without hesitating and with a smile on his face, he replies: Agustín Tapia.

Just having completed the high school, he admits that balancing studies with training isn't always easy. Determination, he asserts, is the key. "During classes, it was harder because I also had tutoring, so I could only train when I didn't have tutoring. I train once a week with a coach, and then I play one or two matches per week here at the [Raposeiras] club," he shares, sitting in the shade of one of the many carob trees that populate the sports club.

Lunchtime is approaching, and the temperature is nearing 40 degrees. How do you maintain the self-discipline not to miss trainings and play, sometimes in this weather? Any tricks? "No. I've always kept in mind that if I want something, I have to work for it. Even on days when I don't feel like training that much, going to the gym, we have to get it in our heads that if that's what we want, we have to go: it's yes or yes." And he laughs. Meanwhile, his friend André Nunes waits for him to hit some balls on the padel court sponsored by Engel & Völkers Faro-Tavira.

Is frequently changing partners something that destabilizes you? "It doesn't bother me much because now that I'm young, I have to get used to playing with a more stable partner in senior matches and with another partner in junior matches. But there are athletes who prefer playing with a fixed partner."

Regarding the decision to become a professional padel player, he explains: "Since I was a child, I've always dreamed of doing something related to sports, so when padel came into my life, I immediately knew this was it, that this was the sport. Now I'm going to Lisbon as a player, but since I've also taken coaching courses, I hope to give some training sessions to support myself. In the medium term, my main goal is to establish myself easily and quickly in Lisbon. And in the long term, like any athlete aspires, it's to be the best, nationally first, and then, who knows, internationally as well."

Regarding the sponsorship from Engel & Völkers Faro-Tavira, the player who currently belongs to the Vilamoura Tennis and Padel Academy considers it very important. "It's good support, it supports me a lot, helps with expenses, sharing on social media. It's important," he says, emphasizing that he already knew the brand because it's a well-known multinational.

"More than representing an international luxury real estate company in the eastern Algarve, Engel & Völkers Faro-Tavira aims to be a company that's close, attentive, and involved in the community where it operates," says João Agualusa, Managing Partner of Engel & Völkers for the entire eastern Algarve region, while also taking the opportunity to wish young Henrique Orge success and happiness.

"Although padel is gaining significant traction right now, it's interesting to note that it was in the eastern Algarve, specifically in Vila Real de Santo António, that some of the first padel courts were built in Portugal in the 1990s. Engel & Völkers Faro-Tavira is currently marketing several properties that are very close to padel courts or even inside luxury resorts that have multiple planned courts," stresses the responsible for the Engel & Völkers Faro-Tavira license.