News from Beijing #3
It’s already been a week that the Caisse d'Epargne, a partner of the French Ski Federation since 1996 and of the French Olympic Team since 2010, has been sharing the thrills of the Olympic events and pride in the number of French medals. And last weekend brought its own share of strong emotions.
The thrill, first of all, of Maurice Manificat’s performance! The cross-country skier, supported by the Caisse d'Epargne Rhône Alpes, saw his efforts rewarded with a magnificent bronze medal shared with his teammates Richard Jouve, Hugo Lapalus and Clément Parisse in the men's cross-country skiing relay. After Sochi in 2014 and PyeongChang in 2018, the French have won a third consecutive bronze medal in the 4x10km event. Maurice, for his part, added a fourth Olympic medal to his record of achievements and joined the very exclusive club of great champions.
Our hearts leapt when the Marseillaise rang out once again in Beijing this weekend to celebrate the French delegation’s new gold medal and the particularly fine victory of Quentin Fillon Maillet in the biathlon pursuit event: a fourth medal at the Beijing Games for this athlete from the Jura département in eastern France. And we still have a mass start and relay race in store when the French biathletes will have new opportunities to excel!
A few hours earlier Mathieu Faivre had set the example with brio by adding a bronze medal to the total already clocked up by French delegation. At the end of the Giant slalom event for Alpine skiers, the athlete from Nice became the 6th Frenchman to be awarded a medal in this specialty.
Biathlon, freestyle skiing, cross-country skiing... In the second week, the different events will be coming thick and fast for the athletes sponsored by the Group and supported by the entire family of French sports enthusiasts.
We’re all behind the French Olympic Team!
Photo: Quentin Fillon Maillet, gold medalist in the men’s biathlon pursuit event