Poverty and sport. These are two subjects that apparently do not go together, and yet. This Thursday, the newspaper L'Équipe devotes a special feature to these athletes hit hard by the crisis. Journalist Céline Nony went to meet French athletes who were preparing for the Tokyo Olympics, and for whom everything stopped suddenly, due to the coronavirus health crisis. Many of these athletes are not professionals. They must earn a living in addition to engaging in the practice of their sport.
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Fund one more season
All sectors of the economy are affected by the Covid-19 and its consequences. For athletes under contract with companies, the impact is direct. "Most will tell you 'We are not the most to complain about, we have savings and we are going to tap into them to pay for another season'," says Céline Nony.
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"They also find themselves outside of the current crisis having to manage a season to get to the Olympic Games and suddenly they have this concern despite knowing 'are our sponsors, are these companies with which we signed a performance pact, will we continue to support us? '", she adds.
Going to the end of the Olympic dream
The National Sports Agency financially supports athletes. Last year, it paid more than 12 million euros. However, the postponement of the Tokyo Olympic Games or the impossibility of training for the moment lead to complex situations. As for the athlete Sophie Martinet, gold and silver medalist in judo, during the Paralympic Games.
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"She is a liberal physiotherapist, she has put her job on hold. These are real efforts, both family and financial, because even if she has federal assistance, for the past few years, she explained to me that her income have almost halved, "said the journalist. "Despite everything, she says 'I am far-sighted, I have considered it, I have savings I will use her savings to complete my Olympic project'."