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Padel: Young De La Mare steals the show to win in Bristol

Padel: Young De La Mare steals the show to win in Bristol

Tuesday 09 April 2024

Padel: Young De La Mare steals the show to win in Bristol

Tuesday 09 April 2024


Teenager Chloe De La Mare cemented her junior number one ranking with a stunning win at a LA Grade 2 Padel Tournament in Bristol.

Chloe, 13, was playing for the first time with a new partner, 14 year old Rosie Quirk, in the Ladies Open.

They were put together by top UK coach Dan Troy who has been helping them both with their progression in the sport.

The two teenagers met on Friday afternoon and had a brief hit before heading out to get to know each other over a pizza.

Their partnership gelled immediately, and the two girls looked like they had been playing together for years from the outset.

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Pictured: Guernsey's Chloe De La Mare (r) only met her partner Rosie Quirk on the eve of the event. They quickly gelled over pizza and went on to win.

Awarded a walkover in the first round, they faced the number 2 seeds, Karen Hazzard, who has played for the GB Vets team, and Lucie Wade in their first ever match together.

They lost the first set 4-6, but from there settled quickly and turned things around.

They took the second set 6-1 and closed out the match convincingly in a Champions Tie Break, 10-6.

In the semi-finals they faced third seeds Eloise Tait, who regularly trains with the GB squad, and Rachel Heath-Porsz. They quickly claimed the first set 6-2, before winning a tighter second set in a tie-break 7-6 (5).

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Pictured: The finalists, l-r, Lauren Watson-Steele and Lauren Barker were brushed aside by the teeanage pairing of Chloe De La Mare and Rosie Quirk.

The two teenagers had made it through to a final where they faced Guernsey's own "Lauren's," Barker and Watson-Steele, who have been largely unchallenged in domestic competition on the island.

Chloe and Rosie never looked like losing.

They put every ball back in play, forcing the Laurens into long rallies. They took the first set 6-2 and then raced to a 5-0 lead in the second before closing it out 6-2.

Chloe becomes the first Guernsey player, and youngest ever winner, of a Grade 2 level event in the UK.

Barker and Chloe's aunt, Chantelle De La Mare previously won a Grade 2 event held in Guernsey in 2022 which only contained home players.

The win cements her position as the number one ranked junior girl in the UK and will see her rise even higher in the senior rankings, where she is already inside the top 50.

"I'm just so happy with the way we played today," said Chloe.

"It was the first time Rosie and I have played together and we had so much fun. We never expected to do so well so soon into our partnership, and so to win the tournament is just so exciting."

Meanwhile in the Men's event, Guernsey's Olly Cull and his partner from the UK, Ethan Bardo, had another strong tournament playing together, reaching the final where they lost out to the top seeds Jake Bewley and Cameron Dollimore, 6-3, 6-2.

Also in the men's open event, Chloe's older brother Liam (15) and her father Matt reached the quarter-final stages where they lost an incredibly tight battle to George Weller and Simon Garforth-Bles (ranked 9 and 18 in the LTA rankings respectively), 7-6, 5-7, 2-10.

This performance will see Liam rise to number 2 in the UK boys rankings (U18) and cement his place in the top 100 in the men's game.

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