The meeting is set for 9 a.m. In Fontainebleau, nearly 70 km from Paris, the army has the National Defense Sports Center, the equivalent of Insep. It is here, in particular, that the Joint Sports School (EIS) is located. On this Thursday at the end of August, it was here that the soldiers, former soldiers or injured affiliates met, for their last preparation course before the sixth edition of the Invictus Games, which began this Sunday in Düsseldorf (Germany, until ‘to September 16).
Endless bursts of laughter, excitement: the atmosphere is great in the gymnasium where the members of the French team are fine-tuning the final adjustments in sitting volleyball, under the eyes of Jérôme Dumas, specialist in discipline. “We work on technique, they need to reassure themselves, it’s important to work on talent, to show them that they are capable,” underlines the Puc Volley coach, who came to supervise them for three days. They tend to underestimate themselves. » Their injuries can be physical and reduce their motor skills, or psychological and invisible.
22 French participants, 21 nations in total
Captain of the team, Warrant Officer Brice is in this case. Victim of an attack in Afghanistan in 2008, he lost “10 brothers in arms”, has no visible disability but has since had to endure severe post-traumatic syndrome. “I wanted to force it, not to stop, but my body and my head were no longer following. We don’t want to go out anymore, we don’t have a feeling in our stomach, we don’t want to do anything anymore. »
“As a soldier, falling is not normal, there is shame towards us,” continues Frédéric, a victim of an attack in 2012. “I started to have phases where I relived scenes, I became aggressive, my behavior completely changed. My colleagues alerted the medical service, I didn’t want to find out. It was hell, I closed myself off for more than six months, I cut ties with my children who couldn’t stand it. » Frédéric is participating in his second Invictus Games, after The Hague in 2021.
Including Brice and him, 22 wounded soldiers, veterans and civilians from the Ministry of the Armed Forces and the national gendarmerie defend the colors of France in Düsseldorf in 10 disciplines including athletics, wheelchair rugby, wheelchair basketball, volleyball sitting or swimming. Each of the 22 injured can be accompanied by two relatives.
This competition, initiated in 2014 by Prince Harry, former artillery co-pilot officer in Afghanistan, brings together more than 550 wounded from 21 nations, with a philosophy that has evolved over the years. Beyond the sporting results made a priority in the first years, the stated goal is now more reconstruction through sport.
For this edition supported by the aeronautics giant Boeing, the French army therefore launched a detection process since May 2022, then a selection among 60 volunteers from July of the same year, and then began preparation from September, with one-week internships at the CNSD every six weeks.
“We are finding the cohesion we had in the army and humanly it is twice as strong. I discovered what being human was. »
Frédéric, army veteran
Each member of the French team must participate in two team sports and at least one individual activity. “During the courses, we worked on team sports,” explains Commander Erwan Lebrun, head of the Military Wounded and Sport Department at the CNSD, “but everyone had to make the effort to join a club at home for the activity. individual. This is part of the rebuilding process. » On the program during the courses, 4 to 8 hours of sport per day and psychological and medical support according to needs.
“The hardest part was taking the first step,” admits Brice, “but then we put things into perspective and above all, thanks to that, we realize that we are not alone. » “We lift each other up,” adds Frédéric, “we find the cohesion we had in the army and humanly it’s twice as strong. I discovered what being human was. »
A few hundred meters from the gymnasium, at the archery range, Michel Vuillerminaz improvised as a coach. This former gendarme, thrown against a tree by a car during an escort operation, lost part of one of his knees. “For me, these Invictus Games are the reward for a year of work. I can do things I didn’t think I could do again after the accident. But be careful, he warns, this is not the ultimate step, it is one of the steps that will allow you to continue to do things afterwards.
Even if this is not the primary ambition, France, which obtained 14 medals with 14 athletes in 2021 in The Hague, is hopeful of improving its record this year.
2023-09-10 14:03:48
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