originally from Saône-et-Loire, she spent 2 weeks on Belem with the Olympic flame

This Wednesday, May 8, the Belem, the last French three-masted ship, will arrive in Marseille with the Olympic flame. A young girl from Chalon-sur-Saône (Saône-et-Loire), Noémie Olejniezak, spent two weeks in this famous boat as close as possible to this “magnificent” symbol.

It is placed, on a barrel, in a room of the legendary Belem. In front, young people are lining up to take photos: the Olympic flame is indeed the star of these coming weeks. Two weeks after leaving Athens, she arrived aboard the last French three-masted ship on Wednesday May 8 in Marseille.

On board, the crew is very diverse: 16 experienced sailors teach 14 trainees the rules of Belem. They are strict: the meal is at a defined time, tests for abandoning the boat take place throughout the crossing.

But the young people on board are not losing motivation. “It’s better that there are rules, otherwise we’d be a little messy on the boat“, explains Noémie Olejniezak, one of the Flame scouts. Born in Chalon-sur-Saône (Saône-et-Loire), she has lived for several years at the “La Maisonnée” educational home in Mâcon.

This is his second trip aboard the boat. This time, the adventure is still grandiose. “It’s still quite strong to have a flame with us aboard the Belem, right next to us. I had already worn it when we were at the dock. It did something to me, yes, I was moved“, she adds on board the ship.

These young people aged 17 to 25 have had tumultuous life journeys. Some are in rehabilitation, others are failing at school. Noémie arrived at the La Maisonnée home in 2016, after being with a host family.

“We saw him grow and flourish. When she arrived, she was very reserved. Then, she got involved in personal assistance associations and since then, she has opened up,” explains Anne-Marie Jean-Joseph, director of the home.

One day, La Maisonnée was contacted to find out if the home wanted to participate in an inclusive action on Belem. Noémie immediately accepted. “She had a lot of stress, but above all pride and impatience. When her clothing package arrived for Belem, she couldn’t wait to leave.“, indicates Mégane Lattaud, specialist home educator.

Today, these two educators measure Noémie’s luck. “Personally, I’m proud and a little jealous. She represents our institution, but also our region on board the emblem which is the Belem.“

At sea, every day has its share of activities: hoisting the sails, helping with navigation or cleaning. There are also the essentials, like learning nautical knots, an activity that Noémie quickly mastered. Above all, it allows you to create links. “We all get along very well. We all laugh and talk together, it’s very good.“

The end of this journey is therefore hard for all the Belem trainees. “We’ve all known each other for two weeks, so leaving everyone after two weeks is pretty bad for me. During the briefing, the commander said a few words, and I couldn’t help but cry,” explains a always smiling Noémie.

These two weeks have passed, Noémie will have to return to her daily life. For her future, she is moving towards a hairdressing CAP. Far, therefore, from the Olympic Games… even if the memories of these two weeks will remain engraved in her.