As the first match of the Blues in this EuroBasket 2022 is fast approaching, it is time for French supporters to take out amulets, relics and other lucky charms that could help our national team emerge victorious from this great competition. French players already have theirs, and we’re willing to bet that no one here has the same!
Who can boast of having already had a lucky charm? Not us in any case. But Evan Fournier, Rudy Gobert, Guerschon Yabusele and their teammates can. This story told by Yann Ohnona from our colleagues at The Team dates back to the 2021 Olympic Games in Tokyo. In a room where the three jokers mentioned above, but also Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot and Moustapha Fall, lived, a symbol of the cohesion of the Olympic vice-champion group was born. This symbol is quite simply the door to Evan Fournier’s bedroom. This large, heavy, white object without necessarily any charm was transformed by the Blues with pens as the competition progressed, as explained by Captain Vavane who keeps the object in… his apartment in Paris.
“Coach often says things you’ve never heard. We noted on the door what marked us. It has become a ritual after matches, practices and video sessions. We immortalized the madness, the nonsense. »
Marked by punchlines of all kinds (Boris Diaw specifies that there is even “X-rated stuff on it”) and their new nickname “the Marmules” (basically, the beefy ones), this door has become the image of the relationship that is created between the players. So out of the question to leave without. We recognize here the determination of the rear of the Knicks and now captain of the group, to whom the intendant of the EDF Théo Gallois had said that the organization would never let him leave with a door. It seems so: a Sky Priority label, a good unhinging of the families, and here we go. Yabusele recalls with a laugh:
“We didn’t think he was serious. When we arrived at the Pullman hotel in Paris and saw him with it, we burst out laughing. It’s a memory that bears witness to the atmosphere that reigned between us. We were on the same wavelength, we had so much fun. It’s amazing what we were able to do together, with this jersey on our backs. We rediscovered this vibe when we got together this summer. The vibe of marmules. »
This vibe, the Blues must keep it alive during this EuroBasket 2022. For new and old alike, this exit door from the Tokyo Olympic Village must remind them of how much they are a united group, a family, but also that ‘they have to build on what they learned at the last Olympics: they are capable of going all the way, even if the road is long. Falling at the foot of first place, the Blues made us understand that it was cool – even very cool – a silver charm but that now, the standards were no longer the same: they want gold. We’re not there yet, but at least the French players can relate to something. While waiting for the next door, since Vavane obviously intends to get off at each competition.
And as Vincent Collet, a specialist in this kind of motivating declarations (this one is written on the relic of course) and which make our Blues laugh, said, “We are here to shock the world, gentlemen! Shock, gentlemen, shock, and may this door be favorable to us!
Text source: The Team