The runners from Reunion Island left the metropolis with four medals won at the French Track Championship for the Future, not to mention four 4th places. The Indian Ocean Committee had prepared its case well. “We have been on the subject for three months, but with only one training per week“, confides Sébastien Henriette to DirectVelo. The former track rider for the French team trains young Reunion Islanders on the island's only track. “We have a velodrome in Saint-Denis, 333 meters, in poor condition. They suffer repeated punctures, at full speed, we cannot train properly“.
So for the Cadets or Juniors who discovered the 200-meter velodrome of Loudéac, a change of scenery was in order. “We have several 4th places. For these places of 4, it is the experience of the velodrome that we miss“, he notes. Experience also played a role in the team sprint final. The starter is Jérémy Boyer, a Cadet. Reunion loses on two false starts. “What penalized us was not having a starting block, the kid got stuck in it“.
“FOR YOUNG PEOPLE AND THEIR FAMILIES, IT IS A LOT OF SACRIFICES”
The results of the Meeting amount to four podiums, including one by team. “Out of eleven runners, five are medalists“Among the medalists, Cadette Tessy Payet, 3rd in the points race.”She has the qualities of a puncher, she does everything, she made the French Road Championship, she is one of the kids who dominate their category“, specifies Sébastien Henriette. Even if the sprinters are well represented in the delegation, the technician wants to show them all the facets of cycling. “In Cadets, they touch everything, everyone finds their specialty over time. There isn't as much density as I would like but I judge the kids' performances based on the times. A time, on the track, says if the athlete is good“.
But without a velodrome in good condition, the Reunionese track riders cannot stay at home to progress. “The overseas pole is the only way to help young people progress. For young people and their families, it's a lot of sacrificesinsists Sébastien Henriette. For some, it takes enormous psychological work to overcome the pressure when they are alone, far from home“. Louis Fuhrmann has just joined Nicolas Laugier and Léa Grondin at the Bourges pole. Despite Donavan Grondin's good results in the French team, the technician regrets the lack of local support. “Politicians will use his image to show off but behind it, nothing is done. We are not helped as we should be“Bring in the delegation of eleven runners – “This is the first time I've brought one this big” – costs 20 to 30,000 euros. “And the kids and their families are forced to put their hands in their pockets“.
