Padel made a historic debut at the XIII South American Games in 2026, with Argentina and Paraguay claiming the inaugural gold medals in front of a capacity crowd at the Invencible Stadium in Rafaela. The event, which featured 32 athletes from eight nations, marked a significant milestone for the sport's integration into major international multi-sport competitions.
Tournament Results and Medalists
The competition saw intense action across four days, concluding with a sold-out final day attended by 4,100 spectators. The final standings for the medal rounds were as follows:
- Men’s Gold: Martin Abud and Facundo Dehnike (Paraguay) secured the title by defeating Argentina’s Santino Contreras and Ignacio Piotto with a score of 6-4, 7-6. The pair remained dominant throughout the tournament, dropping only one set during the entire event.
- Women’s Gold: Victoria Milena Vilchez and Maria Belen Mosca (Argentina) claimed the gold medal with a commanding 6-2, 6-3 victory over Chile’s Catalina Arancibia and Kimberley Ahumada Carrasco. The Argentine duo maintained a perfect record, winning every match without dropping a single set.
- Men’s Bronze: Uruguay’s Juan Ignacio Artia Malugani and Higor Ensslin Alves took third place after a decisive 6-2, 6-2 win against Chile’s Daniel Salinas Ordenes and Marias Negrete Oliva.
- Women’s Bronze: Alejandra Alvarez and Marines Holguin Reyes (Ecuador) earned the bronze medal by defeating Peru’s Nicole Aragones Miro Quesada and Maria Paula Torres Draxl. The match ended in a tight first-set tie-break followed by a dominant 6-1 second set.
This successful inclusion follows previous exhibition matches held at the Asuncion 2022 games and reflects the ongoing efforts of the International Padel Federation to align the sport with the values of the Olympic Charter. Following this success in Santa Fe, the global expansion of padel continues, with upcoming appearances scheduled for the Asian Games in Nagoya, the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Riyadh, and the European Games in Istanbul.
