By Aline Chatel
Published on 17 Jan 21 at 16:21
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The elastic always stretches a little more but does not break. Or, in any case, not yet. “For kids, it’s psychologically hard,” observes Alexandre Hébert, educator at Caen Handball. They are fed up with. The mini-Vikings are in the same boat as the millions of French sportsmen. The Prime Minister announced, Thursday, January 14, 2021, a new suspension of indoor practice for minors (this was already the case for adults). For the third time since March 2020, the sport is shutting down. For the coaches, we will have to rack our brains again.
We try to provide our players with a different education. But at some point, we’re going to start going in circles. We’re coming to the end.
Planning aces
Like many clubs, Caen Handball and the Hockey Club de Caen used the video to keep in touch with their licensees during the first two confinements. Reinforcement sessions, contests, games, interventions by specialists… the coaches have spared no effort. “Each time we started again, almost everyone was present, welcomes Virgile Mariette. But there, that’s a lot. Families say that the children are sad, that homeschooling is complicated. “For educators,“ the most tiring thing is having to do the yo-yo ”. Virgile Mariette, who must systematically consult the figure skating club to establish new training schedules, is preparing his thirtieth schedule since the start of the crisis.
–Responsiveness and creativity
But now, coaches of all stripes have no choice: they must be responsive. “As soon as we have the means to practice, we do it immediately,” emphasizes Alexandre Hébert at Caen Handball. We do not ask the question. The objective is that our licensees can practice their passion even if it remains complicated. The handball players will leave the gymnasiums to try to find slots outside, where contactless training remains authorized. Look for new solutions over and over again. “Parents have a great ability to adapt,” observes hockey player Virgile Mariette. Result: in these clubs – rather oriented towards the elite – that we consulted, the practitioners remain faithful.
We were lucky not to have much loss. We even increased the number of licensees.
A delay in learning
But how to remain fully invested in such a context? “I fear that there is a significant drop in motivation, especially in the current period, advance Alexandre Hébert. Kids don’t have a goal. “And even if the supervisors did everything to ensure continuity,” there will be a delay in learning, that’s for sure. Virgile Mariette, who, like the others, had to review contactless training programs, is worried: “there are children who will have lost a year and a half”. The recovery in December, however, brought good news. “The little ones didn’t lose too much on skating. We try to increase the ice time, to take what we can take. “
–Understanding parents
Parents, aware of everyone’s efforts, are “hyper-understanding”, according to Alexandre Hébert. “We communicate a lot and they thank us as soon as we set up activities. »No request for reimbursement of the cost of licenses, therefore. But the question may arise, in Caen or elsewhere, if the situation does not improve. “Some clubs have undertaken to reimburse in proportion to the number of matches played. However, some categories have played only two or three official matches. For these young people, the detections for the departmental and regional selections are also at a standstill. And behind it, the entire federal system could suffer.
A blurry future
In the clubs, leaders and educators cling, with the same difficulty as their players: the absence of projection. What they know is that the more time passes, the more obstacles grow. “The boys came back very sharp after the first confinement. During the second lockdown, there was weariness and tests revealed they were less fit. There is therefore apprehension at the start of this third interruption, ”explains Alexandre Hébert. There are six months left to try to save the second part of the 2020-2021 season.
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