As usual, his name was the most applauded when he entered the field on Saturday, before the match against Chaumont, hand in hand with his son, Mathis. “He had been insisting for a week on going home with me and picking up the balls. It was a great moment”smiled, afterwards, Earvin Ngapeth.
The face of the double Olympic champion was, on the other hand, much more closed, at the end of almost 80 minutes sealing the victory in three sets for Haut-Marnais. The second consecutive defeat by the same score in less than a week for Poitiers after that of Tuesday in Montpellier. Despite the disappointment, the double Olympic champion still accepted a few selfies with his young supporters before heading off to digest his frustration in the privacy of the locker room.
Selfie break for the double Olympic champion.
© (Photo cor. NR-CP, Mickaël Pichon)
“That’s when I wanted to become a volleyball player”
It must be said that this match was not like the others. It was the last from Poitevin to Lawson-Body under the tunic of Alterna Stade Poitevin Volley-Ball before his departure to Turkey, to Fenerbahçe, scheduled for the beginning of 2025. “I wanted to leave this room with a victory. We had prepared well for this. It came down to details, balls falling, little things which, against teams like Chaumont or Montpellier, do not forgive. We are no worse than Chaumont. But we made too many mistakes”he commented.
Lawson Body. Like a second home for Earvin Ngapeth who maintains a strong link with this enclosure also nicknamed “The temple of volleyball”. Lawson-Body, where it all began. The very young Earvin came to run in the aisles, to watch the matches, when his dad, Eric, was the coach of a club that was still called Stade Poitevin at the time. “It was there that I wanted to become a volleyball player, and there, too, that I experienced my first emotions for this sport. »
When his signing for Alterna Stade Poitevin Volley-Ball was made official on September 19, Earvin Ngapeth said he wanted “relight the cauldron”. Three months later, the blowback is spectacular. In Poitiers but also throughout the country.
The enthusiasm generated by the double Olympic champion was beyond measure.
© (Photo cor. NR-CP, Mickaël Pichon)
167% increase in attendance
The numbers speak for themselves. Last season, the Alterna Stade Poitevin Volley-Ball had an average of 1,394 spectators in the Lawson-Body hall in all competitions, with a peak in the semi-final of the Coupe de France against Montpellier (2,293). For the 2024-2025 financial year, the record fell in a pre-season match against Tours (2,341) before being surpassed during the visit of Saint-Nazaire (2,485) for an average of 2,340 spectators since the start of the season, i.e. an increase of 167%… The Ngapeth effect. “Something great happened. In France, of course. But what touched me the most was seeing the Lawson-Body room full every time. I also felt lucky to experience the popularity of volleyball in the city. »
Only one person will be missing, that's for sure. But Earvin Ngapeth does not want Lawson-Body to be depopulated after his departure. “I hope people will continue to come to the room. We must support this team which has real potential even if there are still things to work on to be at the level of Chaumont, Montpellier or Tourcoing. »
Another match at the Arena
But Lawson-Body's child isn't quite gone yet. He still has one match to play with Alterna Stade Poitevin Volley-Ball, on December 27 against Tours, at the Arena Futuroscope. A first for the club but not for him since he already came there with the France team in May 2022. “I don't like to say 'you have to win'. But you will have to put your heart and soul into it and wet your jersey. It will be good to take the victory at the Arena. »
It will then be time to say goodbye to Earvin Ngapeth. Goodbye but not goodbye. “I am from Poitevin. I have my house here, my parents are here. I will definitely come back. » With the Alterna Stade Poitevin jersey? ” I hope so. » He is not the only one.
