British teenagers Jack Kirkland and his brother Finn have introduced ATHLFT, a strength and conditioning app designed specifically for padel players to address increasing injury rates. The platform aims to make expert training accessible and affordable to all levels of players. It partners with experienced coaches to offer structured programs focused on fitness and performance.
Injuries in padel are on the rise, with published research indicating about eight injuries per 1,000 matches, primarily overuse issues affecting the elbow and lower limbs. For players who train three times a week, this could mean an injury every three to six months. To counter this, Jack Kirkland and Finn have co-founded ATHLFT, seeking to democratize the strength and conditioning expertise typically reserved for elite athletes.
The platform collaborates with Move4Sport, led by coach Gareth Shelbourne, who has more than 20 years of experience and previously worked with tennis player Emma Raducanu from age 11 until a year after her US Open win. All coaches at Move4Sport hold master's degrees in strength and conditioning and are accredited by the UKSCA.
ATHLFT provides year-long programs at three levels—Foundations, Intermediate, and Advanced—covering warm-ups, cool-downs, and training blocks for pre-season preparation, strength building, and injury prevention. Each exercise comes with instructions on proper form and explanations of its benefits for padel performance. Subscriptions cost £19.99 per month or £199.99 annually, far below the £60 hourly rate for traditional coaching.
Upcoming additions include six-week targeted blocks aligned with the sporting calendar, such as pre-season programs at all levels. Cameron Dollimore, Britain's number four padel player and ATHLFT's lead ambassador, shared his experience: “I’ve been on the ATHLFT Advanced programme for three months and moved from GB top five to consistently top three during this period. I feel stronger, quicker, and far less stiff. Staying healthy is everything, and ATHLFT has helped me do that.”
The platform launches as a progressive web app, compatible with desktops, mobiles, iOS, and Android, available internationally from the start. Jack Kirkland emphasized the mission: “Every individual committed to a sport deserves the opportunity to play it for as long as possible and perform at the highest level their body allows. We recognised the barrier that traditional one-on-one S&C coaching, typically £60 or more per hour, places in front of most players. ATHLFT exists to remove it.”