While French tennis is going through one of the most difficult moments in its history, Nicolas Escudé, national technical director of the FFT, attaches great importance to the “Team BNP Paribas Young Talents” program intended to support our future champions on the road. peaks. And if the 25 young talents of French tennis will be able to count on the support of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, sponsor of the program, the “Scud”, he remembers that he had been able to count at the time on the precious advice of Guy Forget.
Nicolas Escudé, what are you expecting from this program developed by BNP Paribas in association with the FFT?
Beyond waiting, it is a partnership which is just magnificent for a federation, for our federation. It is a historic partnership that somehow replaces the work that is already ours. Beyond the financial aspect, it helps these young people to structure themselves and rely on former champions, whose career has led them to the highest. This is something very important, because beyond training the champions of tomorrow, it also allows them to be supported in their education, their development and learning about the life of a professional player. Human support for this program is as important as financial support.
Would you have dreamed of being able to benefit from such a program when you were young?
The question did not arise in my time and I have always been well taken care of by the Federation. This “BNP Paribas Jeunes Talents” program was set up to help those who really need it, whether in terms of human resources or financial needs. Regarding current young players, this is necessarily additional support. Not for the federation, but for French tennis.
The results of this year are not brilliant and we are afraid for the future of French tennis. Is this type of structure able to reassure us and can it go through this?
Yes it can. The results at the highest level have been historically catastrophic. Only one Frenchman in the third round in the Grand Slam tournaments, no one in the second week… It’s not really brilliant. The succession takes a little time, we must manage to further densify the pool of young players that we can have at the national level. So, inevitably, the work carried out by BNP Paribas to support this approach makes us optimistic for the future.
Escudé: “I was able to rely on Guy (Forget)”
Isn’t the risk of putting these young players in too much comfort?
I think we have to take the problem differently. You don’t just have to see how comfortable things are. Indeed, some things are more easily accessible to them through this program, but beyond that, they must understand its usefulness as well as the chance they have to benefit from it, either immediately or in the future. With a program like this, young people and their families have more resources at their disposal, but the aim is above all to explain to them what it is for in practice.
For Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, a tennis player is never as strong as when he is comfortable in his sneakers. Do you join him?
Yes it is certain. Players who perform at the highest level are good in their body, in their mind and in their life, and that translates into the results they can achieve on the pitch. It is obvious. This “BNP Paribas Young Talents” program also aims to help them fulfill themselves in human terms.
When you started out, were you also able to rely on an experienced player in order to benefit from his experience?
There were several, yes. During my younger years, and besides, I was able to find him then on the chair as captain (of the French Davis Cup team), there was Guy (Forget). After my federal years, when I left to stand on my own feet, I was able to rely on him regarding the choice of coach and structure.
