the essential
Jeanine Escot, emblematic figure of table Tennis, received honors from her club for her 95th birthday, celebrating a life devoted to sport and conviviality
Tuesday October 15, Jeanine Escot, the oldest table tennis player in Lot-et-Garonne, received the honors of her club, the TTP, on the occasion of her 95th birthday. In his speech, Guy Chatain, senior and leisure manager of Passage Table Tennis, reminded everyone: “You must know, or perhaps will learn, that Jeanine was with Jean, her husband (who died two years ago) and a few others, at the origin of the creation of the Leisure and retired section of the Club” and he adds: “it is for us a true symbol, it represents loyalty, sportsmanship, friendship and conviviality”, it is in a way, in itself, a summary of the values that Passage table tennis advocates.
He concludes by wishing him the traditional “happy birthday” and the wish for “eternal longevity”, this longevity “which demonstrates that table tennis is part of healthy sport”.
Luc Wagon
Jeanine, Swiss sports knife
From the start of our interview, Jeanine wants to remind us that her daughter Chantal Amade-Escot, who is currently pursuing a career in the United States, was a great water skiing champion with 24 French champion titles and 6 European champions. !
A sport that Jeanine also practiced: “I have always played sports, water skiing obviously, on the Garonne and the Lot, but also alpine skiing (at 90 she was still doing blue slopes). I was one of the founders of Agenais Secular Skiing.” She searches a little in her memory and pursues: “I did tennis, I had a small ranking, a lot of athletics and then ping-pong…”.
His career as a table tennis player
It’s a little distant in her memories: “I think I started with my husband with the MGEN which had a table tennis section, rue Barleté, she specifies, every Tuesday and Thursday, then I I then joined the TTP”, which Arnaud Lapeyre, the TTP manager, will confirm: “she and her husband arrived in 89, just two years after the creation of the club, so that’s 35 years! “.
On this sentence, Jeanine responds: “I ended my career as a civil servant at 55, it was still possible at that time. I can say that I have spent more time retired than working! », she says, accompanying her touch of humor with a mischievous smile. She continues to play and bring her joie de vivre to the Leisure and Retired group and concludes our interview with a sentence that highlights her altruism: “If I play sport, it’s to set an example!” “, to which the leaders respond: “You don’t set an example, you are an example! “.
The event ended with a friendly aperitif in honor of Jeanine, in the presence of almost the entire section. The Leisure and Retirees section of the TTP plays every Tuesday and Friday between 8:30 a.m. and noon.
