Laure Manaudou dives back into the twists and turns of her life

Comfortably seated on her sofa, with a frank gaze and a serene face, Laure Manaudou sees her life unfold in the documentary Laure ! Laure ! Laure !, broadcast this Sunday on Canal+.

An evocative title which sums up the media and popular madness which surrounded the swimmer’s career when, at each of her appearances, people chanted her first name to try to catch a glance, get a few words or glean an autograph.

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This over-media coverage and the suffering that resulted from it for her represent the common thread of this magnificent film directed by Laurie Delhostal and Guillaume Priou. « We started our professional life at the same time as Laure Manaudou’s careerexplains the journalist. We followed her and we witnessed her victories. We have wanted to return to this period which had a great impact on us for a long time. »

Chance did the rest. In the summer of 2023, Laurie Delhostal meets Laure Manaudou during her vacation in Biarritz and talks to her about this desire. « I think I told him we were the best people to do it, she smiled. And I managed to convince hershe remembers. Above all, we wanted to retrace the story of an immense champion but also the journey of a free woman. Not to mention the insane over-media coverage she faced. »

At 17, Laure Manaudou became the first French gold medalist in 400m freestyle swimming at the Athens Olympics in 2004. She also won silver (800m freestyle) and bronze (100m backstroke). Victories which immediately propelled her to star status. When she returns to Paris, the crowd only wants to see her, relegating the other sportswomen present alongside her to the rank of extras. « Nobody was looking at Mauresmo or Pierce, who are great champions. They passed for cashiers at Mammoth ! »remembers his trainer at the time, Philippe Lucas, with his famous cheekiness.

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Heart and instinct

The latter testifies in the film. Laure Manaudou’s parents and her two brothers, Nicolas (who was her coach for a time) and Florent (who needs no introduction) too. Faced with numerous archive images, everyone plunges back into the emotions of the time. Some journalists also provide their insight. They recounted his fate and remembered these moments without forgetting to express their mea culpa. Looking at the images, the champion’s extraordinary skills seemed, in fact, to have given those who admired or followed her the right to harass, judge and stifle her. « This film is also a way of analyzing that. We told Laure at the time that it shouldn’t have happened like that »admits Laurie Delhostal.

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Retired from public life for ten years, the swimmer confides without filter and (finally) reveals her truth about the joys and pains that marked her young existence. She returns, for example, for the first time to the intimate photos which were distributed without her knowledge. « It was important for her to talk about it, because she wanted to do some sort of prevention. We feel that she is capable of talking about everything, like someone who has experienced a lot.continues the journalist. This documentary was an opportunity for her to reclaim her own story. »

In addition to showing her incredible career and offering a reflection on media madness and respect for others, the documentary also highlights the astonishing personality of Laure Manaudou. Despite the pressure and her young age, she always let her heart and her instinct guide her choices, even if it was not always for her own good…