A judo monument in the Chantereyne hall in November 1999. This is how to sum up the visit of David Douillet to Cherbourg. An event organized by Jean-Yves Lemarchand. Story.
Posted on May 25, 20 at 5:18 p.m.
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A physical1.96 m for 120-125 kilos may impress you. Even more so when this “giant” weighs two gold medals at the Olympic Games (1996, 2000) and four world champion crowns (1993, 1995 twice, 1997).
The old judoka David Douillet carved on the tatami mats, one of the most beautiful awards in the history of French sport. A Norman, native of Rouen, passing through Cherbourg in 1999, a few months before his second Olympic title won in Sydney, Australia.
Read also: Boxing: back in pictures at the Cherbourg gala with Estelle Mossely
“I agree, I will come”
He was the guest of honor at the Night of martial arts organized by the irremovable Jean-Yves Le Marchand, the current president of AS Cherbourg boxing. He tells :
I wanted to bring him in for a while. But by the end of 1996, he had had a motorcycle accident. So I set my sights on the judoka Djamel Bouras in 1997. It was only a postponement.
Jean Yves Le Marchand keeps a very good memory of the one who will become a few years later Minister of Sports (2011-2012). A little less discussions that preceded his coming.
To get his contact details, I called the French Judo Federation. The secretary at the time, who was originally from the English Channel, wanted to tax me. It was out of the question for me, because I was promoting their discipline by inviting such a champion, who received a fee for the trip and the performance.
After having won the case, the Cherbourg organizer contacted the judoka, a few months before the evening, and play the proximity card. “I told him about Normandy and presented the concept of the event. He replied: I agree. I will come but I will not demonstrate with the adults. It must be said that he came out of injury, “remembers Le Marchand.
Our series on “Sports stars crossed the Channel”:
→ Episode 1: Nadal in the final, forever in the annals…
→ Episode 2: Diagana, at Postaire before being at the top of the poster
→ Episode 3: Thomas Heurtel, an immortal memory…
→ Episode 4: Julian Alaphilippe, from the Côte des Isles to the world summit …
→ Episode 5: Coman, Pavard, Hernandez, three years before the Grail
“I only had half the money in my pocket …”
D-Day, November 1, 1999, everything went as planned. David Douillet arrived in the afternoon with his wife in their car, a Mercedes 500. Meeting point: Boulevard Schuman.
We went straight to the Chantereyne complex. David was to supervise children during an internship. Then there was a reception and a pot in his honor, in the presence in particular of the deputy mayor in charge of Sports.
The evening followed, between 8 p.m. and 1 a.m., during which the Olympic champion crossed swords with young people, before signing autographs and taking pictures with his fans, between two demonstrations of kung fu and karate.
The audience was happy. Douillet has assured. He embodied beautiful values.
The end of the night comes to confirm it:
When I pay it, I will see it in the locker room. I was white because we had fewer people than expected. The receipts were not up to our expectations. I had to give her 50,000 francs. Except that I only had half in my pocket. I then explain the situation to him by offering to pay him twice. Douillet, removing his tapes, patted me on the thigh and said to me, “It’s good for me”. Truthful. And he didn’t ask for anything behind me.
Two iron hands in two velvet gloves.
Our series on “The high places of sport in Cherbourg”:
→ Episode 1: Chantereyne, a boiling cauldron in the heart of the city
→ Episode 2: Nordez, basketball in the rough
→ Episode 3: at the Chantereyne ice rink, beautiful confined evenings
→ Episode 4: let’s open the Maurice-Postaire stadium memory box
→ Episode 5: all the lords on the Jean-Jaurès velodrome ring
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