Roland-Garros (F): Fiona Ferro, discreetly – Roland-Garros (F)

It took time to convince himself of his legitimacy. On the long courts, under the watchful eye of a large audience, in front of prestigious opponents, Fiona Ferro did not immediately feel “in her place”. “On a $ 25,000 in Cherbourg or elsewhere, you may feel less judged, she describes. But at the Australian Open or Indian Wells, big tournaments, mixed, with a lot of people, I focused a little on the eyes of others. Obviously, when you start to think about what people think, it becomes complicated. “

At twenty-three, the player has now learned to detach herself from judgments (real or imaginary) and has proven that this environment was really hers, reinforced by her results (titles in Lausanne and Palermo, a third round in the US Open, an entry into the world top 50). “I had a little trouble feeling like I belonged. During the last two years, it was a little less present and now it is not. “

Without losing his honesty or making a character for himself. When she answers questions, Fiona Ferro doesn’t dodge, nor does she dress up. “I had a great time with her, smiles Stéphane Huet, her trainer before she joins Emmanuel Planque. She is endearing, easy to train, she doesn’t have princess demands like a lot of girls do. He is a very simple person with great values, who fights to the end and who works hard. A very beautiful person. “

The player’s choice, at the end of 2019, to put an end to his fruitful collaboration with the coach did not change Stéphane Huet’s opinion. “The decision was difficult to take, but I thought I needed another speech to take it one step further”, explains Ferro. The decision was even more complex, a little over three years ago, when she said goodbye to her cocoon of Valbonne and to Pierre Bouteyre, her trainer, to go up to the CNE (National Training Center), in Paris. .

She could not progress any more, stagnated for three seasons beyond the 200th place in the world. A zero too many for the one who, at twelve, was aiming for the top 20, and was already in correspondence schooling. “It was thanks to her two older brothers that she discovered tennis at the age of eight, says his father Fabrizio. She had tried dancing, basketball, it didn’t suit her. She wanted to start playing football but we weren’t too favorable at home. She started playing tennis, and she liked it. “

His older brothers, twenty-six and twenty-seven today, were ranked 3/6. They now run a restaurant, very close to the hotel run by their parents. Fiona, the only girl in the family (she also has a sixteen-year-old little brother), remained on court. “On a daily basis, Fiona is a very pleasant girl, quite reserved, his father continues. But once on a court, it’s not the same person. She fights on every point. His strength lies in not letting go. She is a hard worker. “

When she landed at Porte Molitor, in the 16th arrondissement, Huet knew that Ferro “Was a girl with potential. Technically there was no problem, physically it was just work. I always look at the environment and saw that there was something healthy all around, very good parents. Some things were not understood and posed a problem for his development, we just had to put it back together to be able to create something effective. “ An opinion shared by his new coach who sees him “The potential to be top 5”.

The distance, also the fact of “compartmentalizing”, with a physical trainer and a mental trainer, helped the player to find a better balance. “I don’t really know how to explain why, but I think it’s important that everyone stays in their place, she observes. It’s difficult to be the parents of a sportswoman, they don’t know how to react, sometimes. My parents, I need to be close to them and keep them informed, we’re a pretty tight-knit family, and if we don’t, I don’t feel good. “

The family, too, has adapted. “With our sons who work with us, for the organization of the family business, it is easier, expliqué Fabrizio Ferro. We promised ourselves as a family to follow her more often than we could before. It worked well for him, we will try to continue. “

Personal balance and financial autonomy

In Paris, Ferro also found “A better balance in (s) a private life. I have more interests outside tennis, I hang out with more people my age. It’s not crazy stuff, but eating out with my friends in the evening, going to the movies, going to the library … “ The simple pleasures of a young adult. Proud, too, of the financial independence that her entry into the top 100 offered her in October 2018. “We want to show our loved ones that they did not do this for nothing, that we are able to take responsibility, she says. Having this financial autonomy, knowing that I was going to be able to have a coach on the circuit with me all season, that gave me a lot of confidence. “