French badminton players Delphine Delrue and Thom Gicquel, during the Yonex French Open, at the Adidas Arena, in Paris, March 6, 2024. STEPHANE ALLAMAN/SIPA
Interview Yohan Penel, president of the French Badminton Federation, which brings together more than 200,000 members, explains to “New Obs” what allows his sport to attract ever more fans and reveals his hopes for the Olympics, at 100 days of the event.
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Published on April 17, 2024 at 6:00 p.m.
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As president of the French Badminton Federation since December 2020, Yohan Penel is part of the sports movement fully committed to the Paris Games. Especially since its sport is one of the Olympic and Paralympic disciplines. At the beginning of March, its federation organized an international competition in the brand new Adidas Arena, Porte de la Chapelle, the only sports facility built within Paris for the Olympic Games. We met him on this occasion to talk about his organization, but also the debate which is agitating several high-level athletes 100 days before the Games: is France a sporting nation?
Your federation went from 2,400 members during the 1978-1979 season to more than 200,000 in 2023-2024. What enabled this progress?
Yohan Penel Our sport is growing for four reasons. First, because badminton is accessible to everyone. Then, because it ticks all the boxes of what people expect: everyone does what they want – from fun activity to high level – in the same gym. I am used to…
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On the subject of Paris 2024 Olympic Games
2024-04-17 16:00:06
#progress #high #level #sport #badminton #money #visibility
