The 68th edition of the SaintéLyon (78 km and 2,050 m of elevation gain) will take place overnight from Saturday to Sunday, between Saint-Etienne and Lyon.
This legendary nocturnal trail race inspired the former OL and ASSE midfielder, Jérémy Clément.
At 38, he has indeed registered a relay team of former professional footballers from both clubs, with Loïc Perrin, François Clerc and Sidney Govou.
An astonishing sporting challenge, as well as a "nod to the derby" (which will not take place this year), and a spotlight on the A.Ma.ND/Huntington Avenir association which they represent on this course.
“I registered you at SaintéLyon with me, you guys have no choice.
Loïc Perrin, Sidney Govou and François Clerc were surprised to receive this message from their former teammate Jérémy Clément this summer on a Whatsapp group he had just created.
The SaintéLyon is the oldest nature race in France, the 68th edition of which will leave Saint-Etienne this Saturday at 11:30 p.m.
Magnanimous, Jérémy Clément opted for a relay version, and not for the entirety of this formidable night trail of 78 km (2,050 m of elevation gain).
“They all immediately accepted, which is proof of a real relationship of trust between us, appreciates the former defensive midfielder for OL and ASSE.
Since then, we've been motivating ourselves for our training sessions, and we've been sleeping quite a bit too.
“The former side François Clerc, who spent most of his career between Lyon and Saint-Etienne, says:” We saw that Jérémy did not leave us much choice.
So I said to myself that I was going to follow him in this adventure.
When you have such a sporting objective, it allows you to restart the machine”.
Jérémy Clément has already validated the Paris marathon
And the current president of Andrézieux-Bouthéon Football Club (Loire club in National 2), needed it a priori.
Since 2018 and the end of his contract with Gazélec Ajaccio (Ligue 2), he was content with cycling, running and padel, "but rather cool".
François Clerc has therefore “accelerated the pace” in recent months, even running three times at night to get used to efforts with a headlamp.
“Frankly, I don't know how all these runners manage to complete the 78 km of the event solo, as the conditions can be harsh at night in December, continues the former defender of the Blues (13 selections).
I hope there won't be too much ice.
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Consultant for Canal +, Sidney Govou assures that he was "motivated for intensive training" before the first race of his life.
"But time ran out so I did what I could," he smiles.
What I fear the most is having cold hands all the time.
"Compared to "the Gov", François Clerc, and Loïc Perrin, current sports coordinator of a struggling ASSE (20th in Ligue 2), Jérémy Clément thinks he is the ex-professional footballer "the best prepared in the team. ".
He has been training hard since the start of 2022, to the point of having already completed a marathon on April 3 in Paris, all in 3:48.
A race for victims of Huntington's disease
“I told myself that it would be a great challenge, and the opportunity to see Paris in a different way, specifies the one who played at PSG from 2007 to 2011. I had set myself the sole objective of finishing it in less than 4 hours.
Let's just say I didn't step out of my comfort zone.
It feels good to clear your head while running and cycling.
“Currently in the process of passing his attacking and defending coach certificate (CEAD), a diploma launched by the FFF last year, the former coach of Bourgoin-Jallieu (N3) was previously trained at OL, before spend six seasons with neighboring Saint-Etienne.
Marked by the two cities, this 38-year-old man from Isère has always been fascinated by this "mythical race" which joins Lyon and Saint-Etienne in the middle of the night, on the first Saturday of December.
“Unfortunately there is no derby this year, so it's a bit of a contradiction to run in the same team of former OL and ASSE players, confides Jérémy Clément.
We all love the dimension of rivalry in the derby and these pressure matches.
We are therefore proud to promote the race in our region, and for a good cause.
For this occasion, the four former OL and/or ASSE footballers will represent the A.Ma.ND/Huntington Avenir network, a Lyon-based association which has been helping people affected by Huntington's disease for more than 20 years.
“I have never hated Saint-Etienne players”
François Clerc admits having immediately appreciated "the nod to the derby" imagined by Jérémy Clément.
His plan for Saturday evening has also been planned down to the order of the runners: "To start on something that makes sense, I registered Loïc on the first relay from Saint-Etienne, then with François then me. on the following ones, as we both played in the two clubs.
Finally we have Sidney who will end up in Lyon, in his city”.
Finally, how is this Team OL-ASSE perceived by these former players trained in the culture of rivalry of the neighboring club?
“There has always been respect between us during our career, even when we were not in the same club, evokes François Clerc.
This race together is also a way of showing that it's not just the derby and everything that goes with it in life.
They are my best enemies but I have never hated players from Saint-Etienne.
I have always been more lodger than violent on the pitch.
Moreover, François, Jérémy or Bafé Gomis have always been friends, even when they were not at OL but at ASSE.
It's not because we were friends that I risked slowing down in front of them, it was almost the opposite (smile).
Today, I am saddened to see what Sainté is going through in Ligue 2. Moreover, those who are delighted that there is no derby in Ligue 1 this season do not like football.
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“Even if you end up limping…”
While waiting to find such a poster in the Cauldron and at Parc OL, Loïc Perrin, François Clerc, Jérémy Clément and Sidney Govou will therefore put on trail shoes for each of them to travel between 14 and 24 km on this SaintéLyon relay.
If they have never managed to plan a training session all four together in the Monts du Lyonnais, they will find themselves on the starting line, on the night of Saturday to Sunday.
Then at the Halle Tony Garnier in Lyon, for the arrival of the last torchbearer Sidney Govou, who will be entitled to a beautiful portion of 23 km, Sunday at daybreak.
“I'm not here to aim for a good time so I'll try to manage my race as well as possible, even if I have to walk at the end,” explains the seven-time French champion with OL.
Our file on the trail
"We are not physically picking up, so we will encourage each other to go to the end", positive for his part François Clerc.
The leader of the group Jérémy Clément concludes: “It will not be easy, but we are all competitors, we have that in us.
And the respect of other team members will be stronger than anything.
Even if we have to finish with a limp, I know that we will all finish”.
As when it was a question of clenching your teeth, ten years ago, to complete a derby.
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Sport
Soccer
Olympique Lyonnais (OL)
AS Saint-Etienne (ASSE)
Saint Etienne
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Lyons
Sidney Govou