Remembering Bloomers – a day of padel, friendship and fun
Ian Bloomfield was a popular East Glos member who passed away in October 2024. Sally Bloomfield reports on the second annual tournament in Ian’s memory.
On Sunday 27th September, we came together for the Ian Bloomfield Memorial Padel Tournament, a wonderful day of padel, friendship and laughter, while raising money for the British Heart Foundation.
Knowing Ian, he would have hated all the attention being on him, but we hope he would have loved seeing so many friends coming together to remember him, share stories and enjoy a sport and a place that meant so much to him.
His wicked sense of humour and ability to make people laugh will never be forgotten, and there were certainly plenty of smiles and quite a few retellings of his famous (and somewhat exaggerated) stories!
48 members played in the tournament, with many more joining to watch. The odd rain shower didn’t dampen spirits, and everyone had a brilliant time, with plenty of great padel and some memorable moments on court.
The eventual winners were Jack Bloomfield and Gill Little (pictured), who beat younger brother Harry and his partner Jamie Roberts in a well-fought yet surprisingly friendly final.
One of the day’s highlights was a special exhibition match featuring Ian’s sons, Jack and Harry, against the awesome duo Ben Gudzelak and Charlie Andrews. It was a really special moment and, without doubt, Ian would have been incredibly proud to watch them play.
The raffle was another huge success, thanks to some extremely generous donations, so a massive thank you to everyone who donated prizes. Some very lucky winners walked away with a winery tour, an iPad, a weekend away in Devon and a new racket — these were just a small selection of the fabulous prizes up for grabs.
It’s really important to thank everyone who supported the event, so whether you played, watched, bought raffle tickets, donated prizes, studied the weather for weeks, relinquished your courts, arranged the raffle, or even thought about us on the day – thank you.
A particularly big thank you goes to Amanda and all the bar staff for their hard work in making sure we were all well fed and watered at the end of the day.
Overall the event raised £2,520 for the British Heart Foundation, which is such a worthwhile cause. Combined with the 2025 event, over £5,300 has now been raised for the BHF.
It was such a fitting way to remember Ian – we know he would have loved seeing everyone together, even if he would have had a few choice words about being the centre of attention!
Here’s to next year… x