From Injury to the Podium: A Winter of Resilience and Racing
A month ago, I was sidelined. Now, I’m back pushing my limits, chasing podiums, and proving that setbacks don’t define me. Here’s how February unfolded.
I opened my training plan this morning to the realisation that there is only one month left of winter racing. Time flies. It’s the same every winter: You train for so long during the summer and autumn, and then it all goes by so quickly once the racing starts. This winter has been a special one; we could say it’s been cut in three. The first part was racing in December and January, the next part treating my tibiale compartment syndrome and now finally the last part, racing again. Resting following my injections was good for resetting the body halfway through the winter but I trained all summer to race and I’m happy I’m able to do that again. Let’s look back at February, how my recovery went and if I’ve been able to race at my highest level again following my treatment.
Slow and steady were the doctor's instructions…kind of
After my week fully off sport, the instructions from my doctor in Albertville were pretty mixed. On one end I was told that I might struggle a lot with balance and that I should slowly build up to my full training hours again and on the other, he told me, that if it doesn’t hurt, there is nothing from me that indicates that you can’t push full beans right out of the box. This obviously wasn’t the option I took, at least it’s what I thought I didn’t take. My first few sessions back felt great, with no pain stopping me from skiing so that was great, my shins did feel a little stiff but that was to be expected I think taking into account I had just been injected some liquids into them. There was a French Cup race that very weekend and on Thursday when we had to make the call as to whether I was racing or not everything felt good.
However I didn’t race, it had been only 4 days since I was skiing again so even though I felt alright racing would have been silly of us. I did still attend the races though. The races were being held in La Féclaz which is a really good place to train. So we decided with my trainer that it would be a great idea for me to make the most out of the accommodation they had rented for the team and that I could get some good training sessions in. Skiing in Avoriaz and Praz de Lys is really good but both venues come with a lot of elevation gain so even though I can ski for 2h with great snow conditions I’m not covering much ground. Approximately 27km and 650+m of elevation in Avoriaz for 2h of skiing.
La Féclaz is so much different, in the same amount of time I can cover nearly 35km which is a lot faster. The terrain is much less big steep slopes and more a lot of rolling ground with many short ups and downs it’s an amazing place to train. So that’s exactly what I did both race mornings I was up bright and early and went out for two big 2h30 sessions, I managed about 40km both times. It was amazing, but it did raise the question, was it a little too much too soon? Talking to my teammate who had undergone the same medical procedure as me; he was telling me that he had done so much less in terms of training hours when he was getting back into training. I did feel very sore muscular-wise after the weekend but 2 weeks on now and I’m still feeling fine.
Slowly back into racing
The next French Cup in Prémanon was two weeks out which left us loads of time to prepare and be fully operational to try and claim some podium finishes. A big step though before racing on the French Cup was to find a smaller level race to ease me back into it. I’m lucky because in the Haute-Savoie we have a local race every single weekend organised by a different club/village each time. That weekend’s race was a 10km individual skate which is perfect for me, kind of just what we were looking for. So I signed up and got to training for that event. My trainer still had me focused on a lot of volume training (long sessions at a very low intensity) to build up a good base before the end of the winter and for possible IBU Cup races following my results on the French cup in Prémanon.
The week leading up to my local race we didn’t do any high-intensity sessions, just lots of long skiing hours. I was feeling really good and getting excited to race again. It had been a whole month since I last had a bib on and that’s quite unusual for a biathlete like me during the middle of the winter. I had never taken such a break before during my racing season so was quite anxious as to how I and my shins would feel during the race Here is what I had to say before my race:
It’s back to racing tomorrow! Finally! I’m really excited. I haven’t raced now since… I want to say it’s been at least three weeks. It’s probably even more than that. I’m going to find the date. I haven’t raced since the 17th, so nearly a whole month without racing, which, in the middle of the winter, is not something that happens very often at all. So I’m very excited. I’m very excited for tomorrow. Hopefully, I feel good, I feel well, and my muscles are all working properly. We’ll have to see. It’s looking all right. Today’s session felt really good. Fingers crossed everything runs smoothly and I can enjoy myself.
It’s at a resort that I quite like. It’s a local race. My family’s coming, so it should be fun. The goal is just to test the body, push ourselves to the limit, and give it our all on the line. Ten kilometres. I’m approaching it like a proper race. I’m stretching everything, and tomorrow I’ll take my gel and warm up as if it were a proper biathlon race. It is a proper race; that’s why we’re doing it. I want to win. I’m very excited. I can’t wait. As long as I left it all out there and put myself to the floor, I’ll be really happy.
Also hoping there’s no problem with my legs. Fingers crossed.
Here I my thoughts from after the race in the evening:
The race went ahead. It was alright, actually. I’m quite happy with how that event went. Finished second, 20 seconds behind Benoit Chauvet, who’s an amazing athlete. He’s really, really good. So, I’m not too sad to finish behind him. Also, not 100% sure what he had underneath his skis either, but we’re not going to be throwing anything out there. It was good. I’m happy with how it went. My shins were feeling alright as well, so that was cool.
Got to see a lot of friends; always really good vibes. Lots of people cheering. The weather was amazing. My parents came to watch as well, which is even better. Very pleased with how everything went.
A couple of rest days now. Aymeric (my coach) wants me to fully focus on next weekend's big event, he believes. I'm capable of great things, so it's time to lock in and be at 110% for the next week.
The French Cup always delivers
Locking in at 110% was exactly what I did. The week before the French Cup I spent a couple of days in Le Grand Bornand with my team to get some quality shooting training in. There were not many of us left still properly training. I had one teammate out racing at the Junior World Championships and two other teammates who had lost motivation over the winter after some disappointing results earlier on so it was only me and two other friends left. This did mean however that my trainer had more time to focus on our shooting and being able to follow each of our shots individually which is valuable because we get some feedback on our technique and where are misses were after each shot sequence. I was shooting really well and was getting more and more excited to compete on the weekend. I also did a lot of breathing work to get my focus dialled in which must have helped my shooting scores.
The weekend was quickly upon us and before I knew it I was in Prémanon testing my skis on the race track trying to figure out which pair would bring me the win on the weekend. As I’ve been doing all winter here are my raw and unedited thoughts from the night before the race:
So, tomorrow is race day. It’s been… I’m not going to say a month since my last race because I raced last weekend. But it’s been more than a month since my last biathlon race, which is a very long time. I’ve done some high-intensity sessions, including today’s session, and they’ve all gone well. They’ve all gone really well. The shooting’s been good. I’m feeling… I won’t say incredibly confident, but I’m feeling confident. I’m happy with where I’m at and what I’ve been doing lately.
Tomorrow, I just have to do what I’ve been doing; keep everything the same and approach the race in the same way. There are some things that are a little bit annoying. It’s going to be really windy, and there aren’t really any proper warm-up areas, which isn’t amazing. But apart from that, all the lights are green. All the conditions are good, and I’m really looking forward to racing.
Bib number three, which is a good bib for a race like tomorrow I’ll have a slight advantage. Waking up early. It’s been a long time since we’ve had an early start. Hoping to sleep well. It’s a very… yeah, I’ll see. I’m sure it’ll be fine.
Can’t wait. Fingers crossed. Let’s go.
Race One, Sprint 10km
First race of the weekend done. Sprint, 10km. It was alright. I finished 6th, which, when you look at my whole winter, is better than most of my other French Cup race results. But it wasn’t the best. I was aiming for the podium at least, so I’m not very pleased with 6th, but it is what it is.
Looking back at the race, there are probably a couple of things I could have done differently. The first was warming up. There wasn’t really enough snow to warm up, so I decided to go up an alpine piste backwards, which is the stupidest decision I’ve made in a long time. I definitely didn’t think that one through at all. I’ll just ski around on the penalty loop or I’ll go running tomorrow, which should be much better, much easier.
And then I was a little bit lost in my first prone shooting, even though I felt good I missed two and that was one mistake too many, for the podium; two mistakes for the win. But then, no one shot clean today, so that just shows I was on the back burner, with some of my skiing as well. Did I have the best skis? I don’t really know.
Mass start tomorow. The last mass start I did went well, I’ll just try and do it again.
Race Two, Mass Start 15km
Another Mass Start and another podium finish. It’s been going alright, these Mass Starts in Prémanon. Very happy with today; 16 out of 20, and a second place once it was all over. I am second, however, to my teammate, who beat me in the sprint finish, so that’s a little bit annoying.
But after that, I came home. And then, once I got home, I haven’t really done anything, I guess that’s alright. Watched the World Championships. Both my old teammates, Océane and Jeanne, finished second and fourth, respectively, which is just insane. How on earth is it even possible to do such things? I can’t comprehend, but they’ve managed it, and I’m impressed.
While I was driving, I was very emotional. Lots of emotions. Amazing racing. They are absolutely insane girls to watch. I’m so impressed. Hopefully, I can do the same. And when I’ll be able to do the same really depends on what the French Ski Federation coaches decide to do over the next few days, because none of us really deserve to go up (to the IBU Cup circuit). Judicaël was the best overall during this weekend of racing, but I hope they can see that my form has been rising ever since I've had my injections done, and that they'll have confidence in me to be able to produce some good racing back on the IBU Cup circuit.
Final thoughts on February
There you have it; that was my month of recovering from injury and getting back into full-force racing. Looking back, it’s incredible to see how much has happened. The contrast between where I was just a few weeks ago, struggling in the first days after my injections for compartment syndrome, and where I am now, finishing this past weekend with a podium in the French Cup, is huge. I’m really happy with the work I’ve put in and incredibly satisfied with my ability to push through, stay focused, and not let setbacks derail my goals. At the start of the season, I set big objectives for myself, and even though I hit a major roadblock halfway through, I’ve done everything I can to get back to my full level and keep chasing those goals.
Unfortunately, following this weekend of racing in Prémanon, we received the news that the French Ski Federation will not be selecting any athletes for the International IBU Cup circuit. This is incredibly disappointing, especially because back in January when they decided I wouldn’t be racing at the European Championships, they assured me, my coaches, and other athletes that selections would be made based on this weekend’s performances. As always with this federation, they didn’t keep their word, and now, instead of sending a full team of six athletes to Estonia, they will only have three competing. I had really hoped to prove to them that I was back at my full level, capable of racing among the best again, so it’s frustrating to see that effort amount to nothing in terms of selection. I wanted this opportunity, and I feel like I did everything I could to earn it, but in the end, the decision wasn’t mine to make.
That being said, I’m still looking ahead to what’s next. March will bring some great racing opportunities, including the French Cup Final and the French National Championships at the end of the month. In between those, there will be some local races, maybe even some cross-country events, possibly at the French Cup level. I’ll see what makes sense and what fits into my schedule, but either way, I’m excited to keep pushing forward and making the most of the rest of the season. Even if this past month didn’t end the way I had hoped in terms of selection, it has still been an important period of progress, and I’m proud of how far I’ve come. The only thing to do now is keep training, keep racing, and keep proving what I’m capable of.
If you want to follow along with everything I’m up to, you can find me on Strava, Instagram, and now TikTok, where I’ve started posting more frequently. I really appreciate everyone who has been supporting me through this journey, and I want to say a huge thank you for reading. If you enjoyed this, feel free to share it with your friends. I’ll catch up with you again soon!