The ‘Alcaraz phenomenon’ is relaunching the club where it started

The phenomenon Carlos Alcaraz almost doubled the number of members of his usual club, Real Sociedad Club de Campo de Murciawhere he gave his first kicks not so many years ago.

From 600 families with cards that existed in 2020, it has reached more than a thousand today, but the fact is that the activity of the club’s tennis school has also increased, where more than 250 young people hit the ball every day- dream day taking to achieve part of what Carlitos achieved.

won five titles on the ATP circuit this year that is about to end -the United States Open, the Masters 1,000 in Miami and Madrid and the ATP 500 in Rio de Janeiro and Barcelona- and the invasion of the event of their sport made Carlos Alcaraz Garfia in just 19 that year in a global reference and, of course, more than the place where he was born, grew up and positioned himself to be who he is today.

On the slopes where he spent so much time, all the boys and girls who trod them were on his mind and strived to follow in his footsteps, although it was known that few reached the elite and more few reach the area today. occupied by palmareño

In any case, the first consequence of this boom is the facilities of Pigeon shootingbecause this club located at the foot of the El Valle-Carrascoy natural park has always been known, is more crowded and its tennis school, the Carlos Alcaraz Tennis Academy by Reinarun by his father, Carlos Alcaraz González, for 29 years, is at full capacity.

This is how he explained it to EFE Alfredo Octavio Sarriá Amoróscoordinator of said school: “Without a doubt, what Carlos Alcaraz is doing, with his international successes, has an impact on what we do here. and in a way, the coronavirus pandemic and its effects also had an influence. Tennis was the first sport that started after the confinement because it was considered a safe activity in the face of possible contagions and many families brought their children to train here from other sports. In addition, tennis can be played outside here because of the good weather we have and it is engaging and all this makes the schools in the Region at their best”.

Being part of this club located on Buenavista road in El Palmar costs 45 euros per month per family and you must have paid 1,000 euros as an initial payment and have been endorsed by two other members.

The consequence of the disruption of Alcaraz in front of the world and that factor of the pandemic has brought it from 600 related families to more than 1,000 in just two years and the prospects continue to grow, which will bring expansion and improving its facilities.

Urban development in the southern area of ​​Murcia, mainly with the construction of more than 2,000 homes at different stages in the urbanization of Montevida, located between El Palmar and La Albercaalready has an effect on Real Sociedad Club de Campo, which in 2023 will have four new tennis courts and two more for paddle tennis.

They are added to 12 clay tennis courts and one hard surface and four paddle courts already exists in this space. These new fields will occupy the place where the old football field, which has been unused for a long time, is being maintained, and a car park with a capacity for 360 cars will also be built there, which will end the problem. of the lack of parking spaces in the area. .

These actions are already budgeted and in the absence of the approval of the meeting of the club -it is hoped that they will become a reality in the spring- and they are not the only ones.

The gym will also be expanded and another women’s changing room will be built. Also, the construction of a covered pavilion is expected in a space that already has sports courts, which is also the playground of El Limonar school, swimming pool and restaurant area.

This social and sports club it will celebrate its centenary in just a few days -founded in 1923- and led by Tomás González Arques since the early 1990s, tennis is his main engine and the fact that the figure that became Alcaraz emerged from it can be appreciated by looking at what happens in his courts.

“This phenomenon we have already said fills the tennis schools but this is it it also changes the spirit of those who approach them and especially us. We appreciate that they come with more desire to compete and train more hours”, admitted Sarriá.

This graduate in Physical Education, tennis coach and professor at the Montepinar School, who is the first president of the Padel Federation of the Region of Murcia, has had an impact on the “exponential growth” of the school that has carried out his time as coordinator since 2016.

“We have more than 250 students distributed in different groups and the activity takes place without interruption from four in the afternoon, including extracurricular classes at Colegio El Limonar, and until nine in the evening. In that schedule from Monday to Friday there are six courts that run non-stop and from Monday to Thursday, in addition, there is a tennis school for adults,” he said.

“There are always vacancies, especially in the early ages, from five to eight years old, and that is allowed by the wide offer we have and we seek to build a pyramid of young people playing tennis,” added Sarriá , who coordinates the work of a dozen coaches and whose role is “very important” so that the RSCC, which has federated teams in various sports and especially tennis, usually wins regional titles every year.

It is not in vain that they got a ticket for the Spanish Junior Female Infant Male and Alevin Male Championships, the last two categories in which he passed. Carlos Alcaraz Garfiawho acts as the godfather of the academy run by his father and comes to share experiences with his students when his busy schedule allows it.