The life of number 1 in French badminton is not a long, quiet river. Accustomed to embodying the Blues’ best chances internationally for several seasons, Delphine Delrue and Thom Gicquel (both 25 years old) have just experienced their first growing pains. After reaching 5th place in the world in mixed doubles a year ago, the five-time French champions have been out of the top 10 since December.
As they enter the competition on Wednesday at the European Championships in Saarbrücken (Germany), the situation is not dramatic: they still occupy 13th place in the BWF ranking and their presence at the Olympic Games is already assured. But losing three times in a row in the first round, like during the Asian tour, is bound to hurt your head. “The month of January was catastrophic,” recognizes Thom Gicquel.
The good news is that the hardest part seems to be over. The latest results have hinted at a rebound: the duo reached the quarter-finals of the French Open at the beginning of March, then the semi-finals of the Spanish Masters two weeks ago. “We still hoped for a little more, especially at the All England where we lost the match a little on our own (in the first round). But we played well in Spain, it was positive, in addition in a room which will resemble that of Europe,” believes Gicquel.
Fluctuation in the staff
Above all, both players think they know what triggered their results crisis. The problems began when the staff of the French team partly split with the departure of Peter Jeffrey, the English coach who joined the Popov brothers’ team in Fos-sur-Mer. More than others in the Blues group at Insep, the mixed doubles was disrupted during training. “There was a lack of staff, we were a bit left to our own devices,” remarks Gicquel. The motivation was less good, we found ourselves a bit on our own. »
While it chose to turn to an internationalized staff, the Badminton Federation was able to see to what extent the management of its coaches was a sensitive subject. She now has proof in the other direction since the work with the Dane Kim Nielsen, sent as reinforcement, is good for the mixed partners. “It’s better since Kim comes a lot more often, it helps us to be more confident,” underlines Gicquel.
Rebounding is also done with the help of a mental trainer. The doubts left their mark on the minds of a duo who were no longer used to asking themselves so many questions. “The goal is to try to clear our heads when we arrive at a tournament, to be really concentrated,” explains Delrue. We have to think about the positive, not the results which were not good three or four months ago. »
“This time, we want to bring home the gold”
Delphine Delrue before the European Championships
This is what the player from Chambly is doing by looking forward to these European Championships, long before putting the Olympics in mind. The pair are still chasing their first major title and Delrue shows his determination: “Our goal is to win. Two years ago, we failed in the final. This time, we want to bring home the gold. »
She knows “that the Dutch are very fit and that the Danes are always very keen to play, so it won’t be easy. But I think we are on a good path. » Delrue and Gicquel have already shown that it can take them far.
2024-04-10 09:42:04
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