“What an era!” – Telethon 2024: Caverivière and his meeting with Sacha, 8 years old, “superhero” of myopathy research

The Telethon will be held Friday November 29 and Saturday November 30. Philippe Caverivière is one of the “small” sponsors of the 38th edition.

The comedian met Sacha, 8 years old, a fan of Captain America, and reached of the Duchenne muscular dystrophy. A serious genetic disease which affects one in 3,000 boys in France. “The little one is extraordinary,” confided the comedian.

“In life, there are loops,” he continued. “In July 1993, at Club Med, I met Samuel, 13 years old, who had the same illness as Sacha. When he played tennis with me, I felt that he was not scoring a passing against me, but against the illness. We talk a lot and he says to me: ‘You see Philippe, I’m doing well now but in April, I had one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel‘.”

Philippe Caverivière saw Samuel again, went “to his parents”. The teenager unfortunately died.

Sacha “could no longer walk”. The boy “no longer lifted his feet, he was moving towards immobility,” said the comedian. “Thanks to 30 years of donations, to the generosity of the French and to researchers”, the child now benefits from “a serum”. And to conclude: “We played football, we ran, we is amused (…) We had a crazy afternoon. I saw a kid like the others.“

Read more