Portrait of Cédric Fèvre, a para-shooting champion supported by the Caisse d'Epargne Bourgogne Franche-Comté via the Performance Pact.

Last week, Cedric Fèvre won a fine silver medal in the team event of the European Para-Shooting Championships in Hamar, Norway, competing with his French teammates in the 10m rifle prone event...

How did the European championships go?
Cédric Fèvre: We won the silver medal behind Israel. In the individual competition, I came 4th. I made it as far as the final round but was a little disappointed not to be one of the final three.  It was the same as in Tokyo where I also finished 4th... and I only missed the podium by a whisker: two tenths of a point... We could have hoped to do better given my performance during the training sessions.

What do you need to do to get back on the podium and start winning medals again?
Cédric Fèvre: I’m finding it difficult to give full expression to my potential... The medal I won in London 2012 at my first ever Olympic Games shook my self-confidence... That performance – something that nobody expected, least of all me – was difficult to assume... I found it hard to keep performing at the same level.

You had to assume the reputation of a Paralympic champion...?
Cédric Fèvre: That was back in 2012, so my reputation today has lost some of its luster... Let's say that I’m able to perform consistently at a high level, considering that I manage to reach the finals, but that I need to be more clearheaded just when it counts, and to worry less about everything at stake in the results... And this is an issue shared by all the shooters in the French team; it’s a group phenomenon, we all have our inhibitions; we’re all missing something. But neither our technique nor our equipment is to blame. It’s a certain emotiveness that makes us lose focus at the crucial moment…

It’s already good to have identified the problem. Do you think the arrival of Franck Badiou, silver medalist in the 10-meter air rifle event at the Barcelona Olympics in 1992 and the shooting coach of the men's and women's biathlon teams and member of the French team’s coaching staff, will help you to solve this problem?  
Cédric Fèvre: Yes, we’ve already had a long discussion with him. He’s already had to face the same problem and he’ll allow us to benefit from his personal experience. So far, we’ve only tested our equipment with him. His arrival will strengthen the coaching staff and he’ll be working with the national coach, Eric Viller, to enable us to prepare for 2024 as well as we can.

Is overcoming this psychological blockage the challenge of the coming months?
Cédric Fèvre: That's exactly what we need to do: overcome this blockage. We’ll be going to a training camp to get ready for the next major event: the World Cup in June in Châteauroux. Not only is it a World Cup organized at home in France but it’s also the first qualifying competition for the Olympic & Paralympic Games Paris 2024...

So, for you, Paris 2024 has already begun... Are you already actively involved? 
Cédric Fèvre: Yes for us, the Games have already begun... We’re already in the thick of it!

With Groupe BPCE, the Caisse d'Epargne is a Premium Partner of the Olympic & Paralympic Games Paris 2024. Supporting and accompanying confirmed and aspiring high-level French athletes and para-athletes is a major ambition shared by all the Group's different companies and employees. For Cédric, the support provided by the Caisse d'Epargne Bourgogne Franche-Comté is vital for him to prepare his sporting objectives, both financially and morally. “It creates a community and sense of comradeship with the other athletes supported in a similar way. We talk regularly about our respective preparations and results. It's extremely encouraging, and it's great to also feel supported by athletes from other disciplines.”

Read the interview with Gaëlle Edon, a para-shooting champion supported by Banque Palatine.
 

"We share the same flame"