A Bordeaux woman immersed in padel in the heart of Catalonia

I am Magali, from Bordeaux, passionate about sports and a padel player for a year.
A few weeks ago, I decided to treat myself to a break: a week of padel immersion in Barcelona, between training, discoveries and encounters. An adventure that I will not forget.

To arrive at Barcelona with my suitcase and my racket, it was already a small victory. I had booked a one-week padel course in OSS Training Programor a Castelldefels, a seaside resort a few kilometers from the Catalan capital. The program set the tone: classes, matches, video analyses, massages, and total immersion.

Living with locals, Catalan style

As soon as I left the airport, I joined Nuria, my Catalan “host mom.” I don’t really speak Spanish, but she, fortunately, speaks a little English. We quickly laugh at our linguistic clumsiness. Her kindness, humor, and sense of hospitality transform my stay into authentic human experience.

A Bordeaux woman immersed in padel in the heart of Catalonia

Day One: The Spanish Clash

The next day, I discovered the club: eleven padel courts lined up under a big blue sky. The atmosphere is decidedly sporty, sunny. My coach, Pol, a French-speaking Spaniard, immediately puts me at ease.
Backhands, movements, play on the windows: everything is there. The pace is fast, the instructions precise, and I quickly realize that Playing in Spain is another world. Here, fewer mistakes, more strategy, more intensity. Every point counts.

On video analysis are a little unsettling at first – watching yourself play is always a shock – but they become a valuable tool for understanding my mistakes and accelerating my progress.

The pleasure of the game, the rigor of the training

As the days go by, I continue individual lessons and training matchesMy level is nothing exceptional – I've been playing for a year, after having played recreational tennis for a long time – but I can clearly feel the progress. The rallies are longer, my positioning is more accurate.
Matches with the Spanish players are a real joy: competitive but always in a good mood. We laugh, we encourage each other, we sometimes tease each other. It is this conviviality that makes the magic of padel.

Recovery and relaxation

In the middle of the week, my body is crying out for a break. Head to the table. Joan, the center's osteopath. In an hour, he erases my aches and pains and gets me back on track. Ready to go for the last workouts.

Between two sessions, I take advantage of the bicycle provided to walk on the beach. Castelldefels, it's ten kilometers of fine sand, parks, trails and this incredible light on the Mediterranean.
I also discover Sitges, a nearby village where the streets lead to the sea and a church overlooks the bay. A place out of time.

Living the Catalan way

Every lunchtime, a typical Spanish lunch: tapas, tortilla, salads, and the essential Clara, this lemony beer is perfect after an exhausting match. The atmosphere of the club is like the country: open, joyful, welcoming.
In the evening, I find myself understanding a few words of Spanish. I chat, I laugh, I live at a different pace.

A solar parenthesis

When it's time to leave, a week later, I'm exhausted... but happy. I've progressed, I've learned, I've met wonderful people.
And the little extra from OSS: a custom video editing of my matches, to continue to analyze my game and measure my progress.

Barcelona is sun, sea, culture... and now, for me, padelA sporting, human and sunny experience that I recommend to all those who want to experience padel differently.

Barcelona + padel = winning combo. ¡Gracias Amigos!

For more information: it's happening HERE with OSS.

Press Release