Too much heat, too much noise and too much excitement. Before taking the top step of the podium in the C5 individual pursuit (3000m) on Sunday 1st September, a category for athletes with amputations or malformations of a hand or foot, Marie Patouillet, aged 36, was struck by a feeling of discomfort. As she was receiving her gold medal, the runner began to stagger, her face pale.
Breaking the rules of protocol, her compatriot Heïdi Gaugain (2nd) and New Zealander Nicole Murray (3rd) supported her so that she did not collapse during The Marseillaise. “I almost fell, said Marie Patouillet after regaining consciousness. I told the girls: “Don’t go!” I would have to watch the scene again because I don’t remember everything. »
A little earlier, Marie Patouillet, already a silver medallist in the time trial on Thursday 29 August, had reached the finish. “very intense physical effort” to win. In an overheated and packed velodrome in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (Yvelines), the cyclist, who suffers from congenital agenesis – an orthopaedic deformity of the left foot – completed the final laps of her sporting career.
“I wanted them to be magical and they were, she trusted. “It’s an opportunity to be able to choose when you leave.” From January 2025, the new Paralympic champion will return to her job as a general practitioner. The face of a luxury brand, she also intends to continue her fight against homophobia.
More than just an adversary
Facing Heïdi Gaugain in the final, the runner faced more than just an opponent. The two women know each other well. “They are much more than friends, confirms Laurent Thirionet, technical director of the French national team. I see them more as two sisters. »
During competition or training they share the same room. “We have our little habits, – Heïdi Gaugain confided. For example, we introduced the cold bath routine. » During briefings or meals, they are never far from each other, and during training, as soon as one is on the court, the other cheers her on from the sidelines.
The two athletes met after the Tokyo Games in 2021, on the Etoiles du Sport, a sponsorship programme aimed at bringing together top-level athletes. Marie Patouillet then proposed a kind of pact to Heïdi Gauguin, aged 19. “I chose Heïdi, remembers Maria Patouillet. I called her and said: “Look, we are going to be in the same category and therefore opponents. I have experienced situations where two athletes in the same category penalize each other because stress and adversity inhibit them. I don’t want that. Yes, there will always be one in front of the other, but that will be fine.” I really wanted to build our relationship on this basis. »
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