On the occasion of the show  JEC World 2026 , organized in Paris from March 10 to 12,  Babolat  and French society  Fairmat  have announced a collaboration aimed at integrating recycled carbon composites into racquet sports equipment. The goal is to test the use of recycled materials while maintaining the performance requirements expected in elite sports.

An approach based on eco-design

BabolatFairmat, a French company specializing in racket sports for over 150 years, continues its work on reducing the environmental impact of its products. This collaboration with Fairmat is part of an initiative to... Eco conception , with the progressive integration of recycled materials from the earliest design phases.

The projects developed within this framework take the form of  “demonstrator” products intended to test new technical solutions before possible wider distribution across the brand's various product lines.

For BabolatThe challenge lies in exploring solutions that allow us to combine  athletic performance and reduced environmental footprint without altering the sensations sought by the players.

Babolat and Fairmat are collaborating to integrate recycled carbon into sports rackets

Fairmat's technological contribution

For its part,  Fairmat , a company created in 2020 and specializing in the recycling of carbon composites, supplies materials from the recycling of carbon fibers from industrial sectors such as aeronautics.

These recycled composites exhibit technical properties similar to those of traditional materials, particularly in terms of  rigidity and lightness , two essential characteristics for tennis or padel rackets.

According to  Aldric Bourgier , Chief Innovation & Development Officer of BabolatThis collaboration allows us to explore new avenues:

"The goal is to rethink certain equipment by integrating eco-design principles while maintaining the level of performance expected by players. This work with Fairmat constitutes a research and development phase."

For  Benjamin Saada , founder and CEO of Fairmat, sport represents a new field of application for these recycled materials:

"This collaboration demonstrates that recycled composites can be used in sports equipment subject to high technical requirements."

A rapidly growing composites market

The  composite materials , and in particular the  carbon fiber They now occupy an important place in the manufacture of sports equipment.

In padel, carbon fiber rackets now represent more than  40% of the materials market , particularly due to their durability and performance. In tennis, carbon fiber accounts for approximately  64% of racket sales , in front of the aluminum.

More broadly, the global market for composites applied to sports was estimated at  4,7 billion in 2023  and could exceed  8 billion dollars by 2032 , according to several sector studies.

A collaboration focused on experimentation

With this partnership, Babolat and Fairmat wish to explore the possibilities offered by the  recycled carbon composites  in racket sports. The first applications are currently taking the form of experimental projects, designed to test the performance of these materials under real-world conditions.

This initiative is part of a broader movement in the sports sector, where manufacturers are gradually seeking to integrate  more sustainable solutions  in the design of their equipment.

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