Paris (AFP)

Basketball player Evan Fournier pleaded Monday, in a forum addressed to Minister of National Education Jean-Michel Blanquer, for "greater access" of young people "to culture and sport" for the Olympics-2024 in Paris.

The offensive leader of the Blues at the Tokyo Olympics, where they won the silver medal, said in a column published by the Huff Post that "the place of sport in school (was) derisory", pointing to the "minimal" impact of the Ministry of National Education on the performance of team sports.

The back of the New York Knicks reacted to the words of Mr. Blanquer, who linked the success of team indoor sports at the Olympics-2020 (five medals including three gold) to "the importance" of the school system "for the 'the whole population but also for the elite of sport ", on August 9 on Europe 1.

The Minister of Education, Youth and Sports, Jean-Michel Blanquer, greets journalists as he leaves the Council of Ministers, July 28, 2021 on the steps of the Elysée Palace Bertrand GUAY AFP / Archives

The minister's speech had aroused the sarcasm of several French athletes, such as basketball player Vincent Poirier or handball player Vincent Gérard.

Son of a PE teacher, Fournier suggests taking advantage of the Olympics-2024, which will be held in Paris, to "reform the French system by offering greater access to culture and sport".

"Like many of our neighbors, why not offer young people real time slots dedicated to sport in their schedule?"

NBA player for 9 years, the best scorer of the epic of the Blues in Japan proposes to be inspired by the American school system, which "allows ambitious young sportsmen to continue their studies, with the granting of scholarships in the most prestigious universities in the country ".

On the contrary, team sports in France are practiced at school "for simple convenience", according to him.

A gymnasium "above all makes it possible to make up for the lack of budget allocated to sport, and offers, by default, certain activities to the pupils".

A young girl marks a basket under the eyes of the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron, during the visit of the head of state to the gymnasium Jesse Owens, February 27, 2018 in Villetaneuse, near Saint-Denis LUDOVIC MARIN AFP / Archives

The 28-year-old rear also denounces "an inequality in access to sport between establishments with means, and those in more complicated situations".

"It wasn't the tiny two hours of PSE per week in my college schedule that made me want to play basketball," he writes.

Contacted by AFP, the Ministry of National Education stressed that "the EPS was not intended to train high-level athletes but to train as many people as possible in sport" and recalled "the importance of high-level sports courses at school ".

"I am ready, Minister, to welcome you to New York during the season to continue this exchange," Fournier concludes.

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