The young boxer from Carcassonne and the young archer from the City each won the supreme title. The first named took his revenge on an opponent who had beaten him a month earlier. The second overcame a technical problem before winning hands down in the final.
The solid Carcassonne cadet Lohann Camborde (1 m 93 for 96 kg) became, this Sunday, in Istres, French heavyweight champion (over 81 kg) against Provençal Kelyan Bouallegue. During this meeting, the Carcassonnais left no respite to the Marseillais who boxed in front of his public. Bigger and more powerful, he distinguished himself by perfectly mastering all three rounds that he won unanimously from the judges.
From the start of the fight, Camborde’s long front arm allows him to keep his opponent at a distance and frame him with powerful straight shots from the right. During the 2nd round, he even sends his opponent to the mat, who will not be counted and will voluntarily spit out his gumshield in order to obtain a little respite. “It’s a great satisfaction for me, because I had already lost against this same opponent in Istres, a month ago. My coach had warned me that our paths might cross again in the French championship. I worked hard at the gym to get this title. No one gave it to me, I’m very happy about that!”
The beginning of a great story for the one who still has two years ahead of him as a junior.. “It is a godsend in the career of a boxer to obtain a title in the youth categories. They are real electric shocks which make him gain in maturity and in involvement in training”, concludes his trainer.
A junior makes an impression
Besides Lohann Camborde, Gabriel Vannier has made a name for himself. This junior made an impression. After having eliminated the French number 2, and member of the France team the previous week in Talence, in the quarter-finals, he faced a resident of the Pôle France de Nancy in the semi-finals. Alas, the young Carcassonnais bowed on a decision booed by the public.
“Faced with a much taller opponent, we had implemented a very precise tactic with ”Gabi”. To be less aerial, and to suck up the opponent to counter him hard on 2 or 3 shots. And the plan worked. All the public and all the French coaches present saw the victory of my kid, but not two judges out of three who gave the victory to the opponent, not being themselves in agreement on the distribution of rounds, says his trainer Ouahib Friyed. Gabriel Vannier will try to recover from his disillusionment in the regional selection where he will face the Spanish champion of the Canary Islands, in Rodez, on April 15.
An archer with golden arrows
The Archers de la Cité also have a brand new French champion, Benoît Estève, in the ”federal recurve senior men” category. A coronation obtained during the French disabled indoor shooting championships which took place from March 11 to 13 in Saint-Herblain (44).
Benoît Estève first managed to climb to 2nd place in the qualifications which constitute the first phase of the competition. This is all the more commendable as he encountered a technical problem which could have been fatal at this level of competition. Indeed, the axis of the bow draw controller broke, but Benoît Estève managed to improvise a makeshift repair using a paper clip, without losing his calm. And the best was yet to come. During the phase of the duels which closed the competition, Benoît Estève quickly reached the final which then pitted him against Pierre-Yves Gautier, from Brienon (89), an archer crowned with the title of French disabled sports champion 2019 and a double title of champion of France 2021 (outdoors at 50 m for the able-bodied and 50 m disabled). However, the affair was carried out smoothly. The young Carcassonnais inflicted a severe 6-2 on his opponent. This gold medal rightly rewards work, perseverance and an unfailing mind.
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