Paris 2024 Paralympics: It's "great that it has inspired vocations," rejoices Boccia champion Aurélie Aubert, almost a year after her victory

On September 2, 2024, Aurélie Aubert competed in the first Paralympic final in the history of French Boccia, a boules sport related to pétanque, specific to people with disabilities.

Few French people knew Aurélie Aubert. But on September 2, 2024, during the Paralympic Boccia final in Paris, everything will change as the athlete brings France another gold medal . " For now, I don't realize it, but it's huge and I hope it will help me 'tease' Boccia more ," explains the champion.

This victory changed the life of the 28-year-old Frenchwoman, who suffers from cerebral palsy. She would extinguish the Paralympic flame and, a few days later, be awarded the Legion of Honour by Emmanuel Macron in front of 60,000 people at the foot of the Arc de Triomphe.

After this enchanting interlude, the champion is back in training to prepare for the European Boccia Championships in Croatia in July. She left with the European title. Having won a second title, she prefers to remain modest. " You will never hear me say that I am the best in my discipline because that is not at all my state of mind. And then it is not the reality, since there are opposing players who are very strong. I worked for it, and that day, I was there. But there are competitions where I can completely miss out, so you can't say that I am the best in my discipline ," explains Aurélie Aubert.

"I think we always start with a goal, but we have to keep enjoying Boccia. For me, it's a sport where I enjoy myself, otherwise there's no point in continuing."

Aurélie Aubert

to franceinfo

This victory also shone a spotlight on the discipline, with a 21% increase in Boccia licenses since the Frenchwoman's Olympic medal. " I think it's great that it's inspired vocations. It's also helped shine a spotlight on other Paralympic sports ," says a delighted Aurélie Aubert.

The next competition is scheduled for October for a "Challenger" and a "Cup" in November after a well-deserved month of rest for the champion.