Trending News

TWO BRONZE MEDALS AND A FAMILY FORGED IN ASUNCIÓN: US CAT LIBRES TEAM WRAPS PAN AMERICAN OPEN CATEGORIES 2026

The US National Cat Libres Padel Team brought home two third-place finishes from Paraguay, with a run of marathon matches and a team spirit that players called one of the best they have ever been part of.

US NATIONAL JUNIOR PADEL TEAM CHASES A WORLD CUP SPOT IN CANCUN

From November 10 to 14, 2026, the US National Junior Padel Team takes on the best junior nations from across the Americas at the FIP Junior America Padel Cup.

PADEL VS PICKLEBALL: THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO THE DIFFERENCES

Padel and pickleball are two of the fastest-rising sports in America, and they get confused all the time. Both use solid, stringless paddles, start with an underhand serve, and famously social. But step onto each court, and you are playing two very different games.
Get The Latest News
Download USA Padel App

COSTANTINI AND BENVENUTTO SWEEP BOTH TITLES AT FIP PROMISES SAN FRANCISCO

The West Coast’s first-ever FIP Promises stop delivered on its billing. Over three days at Park Padel in South San Francisco, Santiago Costantini and Vitto Benvenutto did what none of the other seeds in the building could: they won it all, twice.

Entered in both the Boys U14 and Boys U16 draws, the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds, respectively. Costantini and Benvenutto left San Francisco with both trophies, cementing themselves as the players to watch out for in this stop on the FIP Promises Americas calendar.

Boys U14: gold-medal match goes the distance

Costantini and Benvenutto topped their round-robin group unbeaten, dropping just one set across wins over Watts/Shpilsky and Sonville/Toro Castano. The other group belonged to Marco Antonio Diaz Leal Ferrer and Oliver Jaeger Dick, who ran the table 3-0 without dropping a set, including a win over Nicolas Darmohusodo and Alan Mendoza Colin.

Both group winners advanced comfortably through the semifinals. Costantini/Benvenutto dominated Darmohusodo/Mendoza Colin, while Diaz Leal/Jaeger Dick were equally efficient in a win over Diego Sonville and Matthew Toro Castano, setting up a final between the tournament’s two form teams.

That final lived up to it. Costantini/Benvenutto took the first set 7-5, but Diaz Leal/Jaeger Dick leveled things at 6-1 to force a match tiebreak. Costantini and Benvenutto closed it out 10-5 to claim the Boys U14 title.

Boys U16: the top three seeds deliver again

Playing up an age group, Costantini and Benvenutto were the No. 2 seed behind, but it was Diego Sonville, this time paired with Vihaan Paka Hegde, and Alexson Watts with Willem Shpilsky who emerged from that group instead, with Sonville/Paka Hegde topping it via a marathon 2-6, 7-5, [10-8] win over Watts/Shpilsky.

Costantini and Benvenutto, meanwhile, cruised through their own group 2-0, and Diaz Leal/Jaeger Dick, fresh off their U14 final appearance, did the same in the bottom half, going 2-0 with wins over Darmohusodo/Rodriguez and Toro Castano/Mendoza Colin.

The semifinals produced the tightest tennis of the week. Watts/Shpilsky edged Sonville/Paka Hegde 7-6(1), 7-5, while Costantini/Benvenutto needed a second-set tiebreak to get past Diaz Leal/Jaeger Dick, 6-2, 7-6(2). 

In the final, Costantini and Benvenutto were untouchable, dispatching Watts/Shpilsky to complete the double.

Ranking implications

Both categories awarded points toward the FIP Promises Americas rankings, which feed directly into national team selection ahead of the FIP Junior World Championships later this year. Costantini and Benvenutto’s sweep, beating a deep, largely American field in each category, including a rematch double-dip against Diaz Leal/Jaeger Dick, makes them one of the standout storylines to come out of the FIP Promises circuit’s U.S. swing this year, and a pairing worth tracking as the junior rankings race continues towards the end of the year. 

Full draws, round-robin records, and match-by-match results are available on the official FIP event page.

Sign Up Today and Become Part of the USPA Community