Deprived of competitions for several months, the gendarmes of the section pétanque of Sports and leisure club of the Gendarmerie (CSLG) of Valenciennes finished eighth in the last Challenge inter-administration.
This meeting did not perhaps have the flavor of a competition of the Federation of Defense Clubs (FCD). But the players of the CSLG of Valenciennes did not shy away from their pleasure of meeting up last weekend at the Laon bowling alley in Hauts-de-France. They were able to play their first tournament for a long time on the occasion of the inter-administration petanque challenge. A tournament organized by the Pas-de-Calais Cultural Sports and Mutual Aid Association.
The CSLG of Valenciennes representative of the FCD
This competition was contested in collaboration with the Interministerial Section of Social Action (SRIAS) of Hauts-de-France. It was open to state officials in the region and their families. 32 triplets were present, with a majority of players from the Police, the penitentiary sector and the Interdepartmental Roads Directorate (DIR). The CSLG of Valenciennes was also the sole representative of the Gendarmerie and the FCD. Winners of the challenge in 2019, the northerners failed to keep their title. Reversed in competition B, at the end of a complicated group stage with two losses and one victory, they finally finished 8th out of 32 teams.
“A little disappointment”
“From the hens, we fell against the future winners of the event. The result is a little disappointment because we won the competition last year ”, explains Michael Sasiela, head of the pétanque section of the CSLG and mobile gendarme in Valenciennes. The northern team was made up of Michael Sasiela, David Hewko (retired from the army) and Eric Mazars (civilian).
CSLG Valenciennes already qualified for the French military championship
In Laon, the northerners probably played their last competition of the season. At the start of the season, they were already crowned military champions of the Hauts de France. This title allowed them to obtain their qualification for the French military championship of the FCD. But with the cancellation of the competition due to the health crisis, they will defend their chances only in 2021 in Rennes. “We are already qualified for the 2021 edition. Qualifications will take place in Laon or Saint-Amand-les-Eaux on February 13 and 14. We will play them just to defend our title at the regional level ”, warns Michael Sasiela.
Read also: A first national Gendarmerie petanque championship
Pétanque: a policeman’s passion
Six Hauts-de-France clubs, affiliated to FCD, offer petanque to their licensees. In Valenciennes, around ten gendarmes are found in this section. As a reminder, soldiers, fine pointers and shooters, recently created the Képitanqués, an association open to active gendarmes, reservists and retired members of the Army. Initially scheduled, then postponed to September 17 and 18, the first edition of the French gendarmes championship will finally take place in 2021.
Franck Seguin
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