Marta Ibarra: "Amateurs try to win points they should only survive"
The Valencia coach has run camps for twenty years. She talks patience, level honesty and why the best holiday players go home tired, not sore.
Przegląd
Marta Ibarra started coaching padel in a small club on the outskirts of Valencia in the early 2000s, when the sport was still a curiosity outside Spain. Two decades later she runs a respected camp programme that welcomes players from across northern Europe each spring and autumn. We met her on a hot morning between sessions, sitting in the shade with a coffee and a ball basket for a footrest.
On what visiting players get wrong
What is the most common thing you see in players who come to your camps?
They try to win points they should only survive. A northern European amateur sees a high ball and wants to smash it. A Spanish amateur sees the same ball and thinks, can I keep the net with a bandeja? That is the biggest difference. Padel rewards patience much more than tennis does, because the walls give everyone a second chance. If you hit hard and the ball comes back off the glass, you have given your opponent time and an easy ball.
How long does it take to change that habit?
The understanding changes in a day. The habit takes months. On a camp we can show them why it works and give them a few drills. Then they have to go home and lose a few matches being patient before they start winning.
On levels and groups
How important is level matching on a camp?
It is everything. I would rather have three groups of four perfectly matched players than two groups of six with a big range. When the level is right, the drills work, the matches are close and people laugh. When it is wrong, the strong players are frustrated and the weaker ones are afraid. We assess everyone on the first morning and we move people. Sometimes that is a delicate conversation, but players always thank us later.
Do people overestimate their level?
Men more than women, if I am honest. Women tend to underestimate. The worst is a couple who come together where one partner is much stronger. We have to be kind but clear.
On holiday padel and the body
What advice do you give about playing so much in a short time?
Your body is not used to five hours a day. Most of our players train twice a week at home. Suddenly they are playing twice a day for five days. We build the week carefully: technical work in the morning when people are fresh, match play in the afternoon, and we always have a lighter day in the middle. And I tell everyone to eat a proper lunch. Some people skip it to save time, and by four o'clock they are hitting balls into the fence.
What is the one piece of kit people forget?
A second pair of shoes. And more socks than they think. The heat here in May and September is not extreme, but you sweat a lot, and blisters ruin camps.
On why she still loves it
After twenty years, what keeps you coaching?
The moment when someone understands the back wall. They have been afraid of it for two years. Then one morning, after an hour of practice, they turn, wait, let the ball come and play a beautiful lob. Their face changes. That is a gift. I have seen it hundreds of times and it still makes me happy.
And your advice for someone planning their first padel holiday?
Be honest about your level, go somewhere with good coaches rather than the most beautiful hotel, and remember you are on holiday. Play hard in the morning, swim in the afternoon, eat well at night. The padel will be better for it.