Basket Le Mag celebrates the 30th anniversary of the Barcelona Olympic Games by devoting extensive coverage to the Dream Team of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. In particular, we can read an interesting interview with the coach of the France team at the time, who had a predestined name, Francis Jordane.
It should be remembered that the French team, which had not obtained its place for Barcelona, had been called to serve as sparring partner for the Americans ahead of the Olympic Games, in Monaco. What good memories for Francis Jordane.
“We saw players and coaching, who behaved in a completely normal, sympathetic way. We were staying in the same hotel, at the Loews in Monaco. During the week, the players got closer, there were new friendships, camaraderie, the same with the staff. It was not a world apart, on the contrary. They also made it easy for us with their easygoing approach. In their way of being, the Americans return very quickly to friendship. It’s a relative friendship, but it’s there. We had meeting points, there was a game room on the ground floor, the Americans were fond of it, the French too, from time to time (Richard) Dacoury, (Stéphane) Ostrowski and others went there take a ride. The meetings took place here, and at the bar. And then there were the parties, and there, there weren’t the Americans on one side and the French on the other. “” At the hotel, they had asked to have a weight room, and every day, the guys were in the room, he reveals elsewhere. Every day. It was bodybuilding in the morning, there were also jogging sessions which were organised, not too much, but it was to get some air, then there were training sessions plus the scrimmages. It fills the days well. And in between, they had time slots to be with their families, and there, they became like the tourists you see on the Côte d’Azur. Then at the Olympics, I saw some of them walking on the Ramblas in full competition. This is part of their habits: they are not deprived of certain pleasures. There, I learned a lot, in human management. »
By the way, what did they tell each other between Jordan(e)?
“At the beginning, when we were introduced, we said to him: “ Do you know that the French coach is called like you? “Him, it made him wince a little: “ Jordan, what ? We talked, he wanted to know what my origins were, if it was American – it turns out that my family is from Spain, Catalonia. We talked about this point, the media rushed to take a picture, and he was very happy. An easy approach. With him as with all the others. »
