Céline Dumerc and the World Cup: “Opening my mouth in the locker room to give two or three instructions, it itched me”

At 40, Céline Dumerc is still a player at Basket Landes, but she is also the general manager of the France team. For South Westshe looks back on Les Bleues’ career at the World Cup and her double role.

“It was my first campaign with this new staff and it was also new for many of us,” she said. It went very well. When we see the sporting result, we are still satisfied. The quarter-final against China left us with a good impression of the work done. We can blame ourselves for some group matches, like against the Serbs, but the competition went well despite a few glitches. »

So, about her duplication, she explains:

” Yes. Yes, I’m a player, but I’m 40 and I don’t have the same interests as the other players on the pitch. I am on the coaching side, so closer to the staff. But it’s also somewhat true with Basket Landes. I still have a player’s eye, behavior and mentality but I manage to make sense of things. My role is to make the link, to talk to the staff knowing what the girls can feel, because I still have this sensitivity, and to discuss with the girls on the requests of the staff, with a broader vision. »

Asked if it was itchy sometimes to go on the field in Sydney, she answers:

“No, because I no longer have the physical abilities but on the other hand, opening my mouth in the locker room to give two or three instructions, it itched me. But I didn’t, I just had one-on-one chats with the girls. »

Photo : FFBB