Padel 

HCM CITY — International athletes dominated the first Vietnam Padel Open – Heineken Cup 2026 which drew to a close on May 17 in HCM City.

It was the second official padel tournament held in Việt Nam by the Việt Nam Tennis Federation (VTF) . Although the number of local players has increased, foreigners still won the top prizes.

Among the champions were Thomas Barateru from France and American Ian Wilson in the men's Open doubles event.

Emma Do of France was paired with Claire Armitage of South Africa to take the women's Open doubles title.

Borja De la Cruz from Spain and Michael Shu from the Netherlands won the men's Semi-Amateur title while Sam Barsukoff from the Netherlands and Vietnamese Lê Vũ Hoài An triumphed in the mixed doubles Semi-Amateur.

The organisers also presented awards to winners of the men's Amateur doubles, women's Semi Amateur and Newbie categories.

The two-day tournament featured more than 100 local and international athletes at the Vietpadel Country Club.

More than VNĐ71 million in cash and gifts were given to top ranking players.

VTF announce that in 2026 with the sponsorship of Heineken, there would have four professional events to be held in Việt Nam as an effort to promote the sport, which had similar rule and style with tennis and pickleball, in the country.

These events will also be basis for VTF to discover talented players for the national team which will compete in the 20th Asian Games in September in Japan. — VNS