Paris 2024 promises revolution for French sailing

The Olympic flame will arrive on French soil in Marseille and that will set the tone for a revolution in a host nation that already harbours a passion for the sport, writes Tom Harle.

No stone will be left unturned by FFVoile in their pursuit of medal success and that is evident even on a fleeting glance at the standings at the Paris 2024 Test Event.

Axel Mazella and Lauriane Nolot locked out golds in Formula Kite. At the Allianz Regatta, there were two French women on the podium in the class and three kites in the top six on the men’s side.

Hopes are high elsewhere with Camille Lecointre and Jérémie Mion striking up a winning partnership in the 470 and Nicolas Goyard, brother of Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist Thomas, enjoying success in the iQFOiL Men on the final day to take France’s gold medal tally to four.

France has won a sailing medal at the last four Olympics and there is no sign that run will end next summer – although the haul of 15 medals at the 1900 Games, where fields were mostly comprised of home sailors, cannot be matched.

The man tasked with marshalling those resources onto the medal table – and absorbing all the subsequent scrutiny – is FFVoile Technical Director Guillaume Chiellino.

“We are lucky to have very strong teams in most of the classes, in the kites, both of them, in the iQFOiL, the 470 and also laser,” he said.

“In some of the classes we have up to three teams fighting for the spot, fighting to be the French team representing France next year here in Marseille.

“For us, for sailing, it’s a big chance to have the Olympic Games in our country. Normally we maybe have a bit less media than the other sports.

“Now we are at the Test event and it’s like being in the Olympic Games. I mean that in that media are following the French sailing team, one year in advance compared to a normal campaign.

“It’s interesting to see that people are pushing us in a good way. I think it’s not pressure, it’s a plus. It’s good to have people pushing our team. We all want to do very well here next year.”

Chiellino and team are busy leveraging the natural advantages that come with competing on home waters.

The French group have been working in Marseille since February and spent the majority of May and June at the Marina facility, mastering the venue’s pernicious conditions.

For Nolot, it will truly be a home Games. She lives less than an hour from the Olympic venue.

“There are a lot of people I know around here, the beach marshal, even the speaker who is a friend of mine,” she said. “If I want to go home and chill, or see my family, it’s not too far. It’s a pretty comfortable environment for me.”

Olympic medal moments provide unique national memories and will no doubt inspire a number of French people to pursue physical activity.

For sailing, the legacy of next summer’s Games will come in bricks and mortar as well as gold, silver and bronze.

Five new, purpose-built facilities now grace the Marina – three of which are already operational.

One is dedicated to high performance but the other four will provide opportunities for the people of Marseille to enjoy the ocean and discover all of the sports you can practise on the sea.

“Legacy is a great thing for us,” said Chiellino. “We have the chance to create a population who love sailing.”

Nolot said: “To have the Games in France, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and for all of the kids in Marseille, it’s going to be good to have all of these facilities to use and discover what sailing’s all about.

“All of the new buildings will stay and we hope the new generation will use them to train as much as possible.”

Head of Communications Olivier Clermont added: “We are hoping to develop sailing. After the Olympics, we are expecting a lot of sailors and youth sailors in our clubs.

“We know it will be very strong so we are starting to work with the different organisations to be ready to have lots of sailors next summer. We talk a lot about the legacy of the Games.”

Chiellino, who has lived in the local area for 30 years, is as good a spokesperson for La Belle Vie as you will find.

“Marseille is a beautiful place for sailing, the city, you have a lot to discover in the city,” he said.

“You can come to Marseille for sailing at the Olympics, or soccer, but you can discover lots of beautiful things.

“If you love climbing you can go to the Calanques, you can hike there, you can enjoy a swim near the Marina because the water is very warm and very clean.

“In the region, you can go to the mountains, you can go to La Provence which is really close. So you can come here for sailing and stay for La Provence.”