Her first autobiographical book and the 2030 Olympics, Marie Bochet confides

At 30 years old and recently retired from the circuit, Marie Bochet still lives at a hundred miles an hour. Currently in Paris to promote her first autobiography, the Savoyard gave a few minutes of her time to France Bleu Pays de Savoie. The opportunity for the child from Beaufortin to talk about this book entitled “My little finger told me”

but also of the future. A future which could involve its involvement in the organizing committee for the 2030 Winter Olympics organized in the French Alps (Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur regions).

France Bleu Pays de Savoie – Does this book correspond to a need to talk, to reveal yourself throughout the pages? Marie Bochet – I think I needed take a little step back

on this great adventure and on the first thirty years of my life. And indeed, I think that putting all this in writing made these years as a high-level athlete much more concrete and it also helped me to calmly make the decision to end my career.

A title as obvious

In this book, you return to your family, to your roots in Beaufortain and the Plan Mya refuge, your “anchor point”. Was explaining where you come from important to you?

Yes, completely because it’s a bit of the basis for the years that followed. These foundations were important and there are many elements that have built my career and this track record. I learned a lot from these first years spent in Beaufortain, surrounded by my loved ones.

Can you explain the title of your book, “My Little Finger Told Me”? Is this a nod to the one you call “my fetish”? (Laughs) I was 25 when I was asked to write this book. At that time, I didn’t yet know what I could tell and if it was really necessary or if it could be interesting for people other than me. And in fact, this title seemed obvious to me because it had already been some time since I realized that this “little finger”, thisslight disability but still a disability

allowed me to open doors. And ultimately, it was he who guided me during this beginning of life. This “little finger” ultimately guided me on paths that I would not necessarily have understood if it had not been there.

Does this mean that without him, without this handicap, you would not have the same Marie Bochet?

We will never know but if I had had my ten fingers I would never have had the chance to meet the French disabled sports and Paralympic movement. And that’s already a great encounter that my “little finger” allowed me.

Managing the glory

In this book, there is of course your sporting journey, your 107 World Cup victories, the 9 big globes, the 8 Paralympic championship titles… but you also talk about this moment when you discovered success and fame. You say that it wasn’t that easy to live with. For what ?Indeed it wasn’t easy and that’s why it was important to talk about my origins at the beginning because it explains a lot of things. When you come from Beaufortain, when you grew up in this fairly preserved valley, yes, finding yourself exposed like that, going back and forth to the capital, changing dimensions… yes, it wasn’t easy. I used toa peaceful little life in the mountains

. And then it was all quite sudden. I won my first Olympic medals in Russia in Sochi (2014) and, the Disabled Sports Federation like the Olympic Committee and me first, we were all surprised by the media coverage. I arrived with this list at a time when, after the London Olympics (2012), the media were starting to take an interest in the Paralympic disciplines. For me, there was no real transition, no adaptation time. It was quite sudden.

Does that mean it was hard to become an icon of Paralympic sport?

This still requires a little learning time. Afterwards, I am not complaining at all about this situation. Today, it allows me to tackle a lot of subjects head-on, to have great opportunities to make certain things happen. So it’s not hard but these are life directions that are not necessarily considered at the start of a career. And you have to have this little time of learning and adaptation necessary to make them bear fruit and use them in the right way.

Would you like this book, Marie Bochet, to make others want to try the adventure? My first goal was to tell the story in its entirety. If today we hear a lot about the Paralympic Games and we are starting to follow para-athletes, we do not yet know very well the underside of these stories and all the stages to take during a career. So it’s to highlight all the people who helped me win all these medals. The second thing is a little an inspirational duty for future generations

Paralympic teams. Show the way and say that there are great adventures to be had, even if you are born with a slight difference or if after an accident you become a person with a disability. And this book also means that when we are guided by passion and desire, there are many beautiful things that can happen to us in life.

JO 2030 ?

A few days ago, a certain Martin Fourcade said that he would like to form a duo with you to lead the Organizing Committee for the 2030 Winter Olympics (they will be organized in France in the Auvergne-Rhônes- Alps and Provence-Alpes-Côté d’Azur). Does the idea tempt you?

I was very touched by Martin’s words. We have been discussing this subject for several months because we had the honor of representing the athletes’ voice when speaking before the IOC. With Martin, we have the same vision of things, the same ambitions for this project. It’s very touching to see a personality like Martin quote me.

But is this an adventure that you would like? Yes yes. When you are an Olympic and Paralympic athlete, when you have been guided by these values ​​throughout your career, you have want to reciprocate

(…) and to give a new direction to this type of event. But I’ve just finished my career and I know that I don’t want to go alone because I won’t necessarily have the necessary energy. I just want to be well supported and at the moment, this is all under discussion. “My little finger told me”Editions
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324 pages, 19.90 euros, released in bookstores on November 7, 2024.