Axel May and Cédric Chasseur, edited by Gauthier Delomez 07:47, September 07, 2021

Boxing lost one of its most illustrious fans on Monday.

French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo, who died at the age of 88, was a big fan of the sport.

On Europe 1, the French champion Tony Yoka and Michel Acariès, organizer of the biggest fights for 40 years, remember his love for the discipline.

Boxing has lost one of its own.

Actor Jean-Paul Belmondo, renowned for having carried out his own stunts in his films, died Monday at the age of 88, leaving the discipline orphaned by one of his most illustrious amateurs.

Before making himself known to the world of the 7th art, "Bébel" could have started a career in boxing, a sport that he continued to follow all his life like many others.

Boxer Tony Yoka, Olympic champion in 2016, had met him.

"I felt small by his side," says Tony Yoka

"There are a lot of people who do not know but he is a great character in boxing in France. He has done a lot for this sport and a lot for me", he explains at the microphone of Europe 1. "It's been ten years that I know him, that I had the chance to meet him. He practically came to all my fights. I will only keep good memories of him when we had discussed, exchanged. spoke of boxing, of his rise, "recalls the French champion.

"I'm two meters tall, but every time I was next to Mr. Belmondo, I felt small because he's the man, the human. He was so imposing."

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"He was at ringside all the time"

Jean-Paul Belmondo had also befriended the Acariès brothers, well established in the world of boxing. Michel, promoter of major fights for 40 years, shares his emotion after the disappearance of the icon of French cinema. "Jean-Paul Belmondo, it's almost a family matter. We dated for many years, whether in Paris, Cannes ... He was at the edge of the ring in all the regions where we presented ourselves, my brother and I. He was an irreplaceable character ", he testifies on Europe 1.

The former fight organizer knew the actor could have made a career in boxing.

"He was a sportsman in all the acceptance of the term because he was omnisports. But boxing, English boxing, had a preponderant place in the life of the club when he was very young. He could have become a great professional. , he had the skills for. Of course, boxing was his life. It was a page of life with him, "continues Michel Acariès.

"A person who really loved sport and all sport"

The actor known for his roles in

Ace of Aces

or

Borsalino

was also a big fan of tennis. For many years, Jean-Paul Belmondo roamed the aisles of Roland-Garros where nothing was missing from the meetings on the center court. The former tennis player Henri Leconte remembers the presence of the actor in the boxes, Porte d'Auteuil. "He was really very close, when we entered the field. He was there, and he told you the right word", recalls the finalist of the 1988 edition at the microphone of Europe 1.

"There are times when I was a little lost and he encouraged me. You can't imagine the presence of Jean-Paul Belmondo. When he came to Roland-Garros with his jacket, I have the impression that 'he still had his firecracker, with his sunglasses, and he was coming out of

Fear over the city

. I'm sad, I'm very moved because he's a person who really loved sport and all sport ", says Henri Leconte, also close to his son Paul Belmondo.