The Long Road: Regrouping After French Team Cut
After three years on the French national biathlon team's training squad, I am being cut loose. This pivotal moment will shape my entire approach to the upcoming year.
In an elite program, there's no room for underperformers. The coaches decided my results and trajectory didn't make the cut for next season. Just like that, my time training with this prestigious group was over. One phone call was all it took to upend my plans. Despite the setback, I’m determined to make the most of this opportunity and plan for a stronger comeback next year.
Leaving the French B Training Squad.
The end of April and early May is always the time of year when our federation announces its decisions. Some federations like Norway announce them straight after the winter others in mid-April and then us, often not last but not far off because our training season starts again in early May and we often have no idea what our plans are for the summer to come. Announcing the teams this late is annoying because for athletes like me who are at the bottom of the list all of April is consistent stress over whether we’ll be in the squad or not. It’s also hard for us to plan our summer training out, most of the other private squads have already closed their candidature and aren’t accepting any more athletes by the time I know what the decision is.
Out of my team of 9 athletes from last year 6 of us were cut from the training squad, and it’s kind of a weird process. My old coach would call us all one by one so as soon as the first person got a call in the morning we were all texting one another to figure out who was still on the list. This is when the stress levels really rise because you are constantly hoping no one calls you, and then sadly my phone rang. My trainer tried to be supportive but in the end, there was nothing you could do. That evening the athletes who remained on the team got a call from their new training staff and off they went. You do feel left behind, I’ve been training with this team for the previous three years and it’s been great, I’d argue I’ve progressed a lot and learnt a lot but then it suddenly all stops.
So why have I been cut you may ask? Especially after some of my results this winter at the junior worlds and the French Cup. Simply put, they are just not good enough.
An athlete of my age in France should be racing on the IBU Cup circuit, a level of racing I was not capable of attending this past winter. I missed out on the selection races and struggled to get back up. Read more about it here. When you look at my past three winters my racing level has been the same throughout. I got my best individual world championship results this year but no podium, I finished second overall in the French Cup but the previous two years as well. Around me, many other athletes have shown better progression and even though their results may not be quite as good they have been kept in the team. Next year will also see the return of a French junior training squad, something that has been missing for the past couple of years and it’s great news that they are focusing on this age group again. With the Olympic games in France in 6 years it is essential to work on the younger generations.
Where am I heading for next year?
After having rushed through all of my solutions in a week and a half I’m confident I’ve made a good choice for next year. Many options were on the table, switching to a private team in a different country, heading to a newly formed private French team or completely changing my racing nationality and hoping over the English channel to join Team GB. But in the end, I’ve stuck to the solution I know the most and who I trained with throughout my years in high school: the Haute Savoie Nordic Ski Team. Heading back to what I know means a couple of things, first off it’s much less hassle than having to learn a whole new system with another squad let alone another country. It also means I can train locally and limit my climate impact which is a big part of my decision-making now.
I’ll be training under the advice of Aymeric Deschamps, he’s a trainer I’ve known for many years and who I like a lot. We work well together and I can’t wait to get this training season on the road. We’ll be going on as many training camp days as I used to have with the French training squad and I’ll have access to the same level of support thanks to our local partners in the Haute Savoie. I’ll be joined by other great athletes, some who have previously been part of the French team and are now back like I am and others who are aspiring to join the national squad in the years to come. Training with this team doesn’t change much for next winter either, my objectives are the same, as I’ve said previously this is not a one-winter project but a long-term one. Ups and downs are part of this kind of project. I’ll be on the start line mid November same as last year and I can’t wait to get things going.
Rough start the the month
With the training having started now it’s been hard for me to get going. Sadly many health issues have come and laid quite some big walls in my way. The flu and pneumonia I contracted in early April still have quite a big effect on my muscles and lungs which means I’m struggling quite a lot to get back into shape. My heart rate has been abnormally high over the recent weeks and I have been struggling to put in consecutive days of training. Just last week I was back in bed with a high fever unable to achieve anything. It is very frustrating but it’s important to learn how to step back and rest properly for your body to recover, constantly putting a lot of stress just makes the illness last longer.
Hopefully, brighter days are ahead now and I can focus on something more consistent to get back into shape. Be sure to follow my socials for updates and be sure to subscribe to the newsletter if you have not already. Thanks a lot for reading.