Pauline Chasselin competes in the final of the European table tennis cup with her team from Grand Quevilly.
“A final is not played, it is won!” Pauline Chasselin frankly sets the scene: even if they do not start as favorites against the Spanish armada of Cartagena, the table tennis players of ALCL Grand Quevilly will not let go in the final of the ETTU European Cup, the first round of which is played this Saturday, April 2 in Grand Quevilly. Above all, the French will not be caught out on motivation and commitment. “On paper, they are stronger because they are better ranked. But we are unpredictable, we can surprise everyone!” Powerful player, physical, attacking, aggressive on the first shots, Pauline Chasselin awaits her opponent firmly.
Historic for the club, this final of the second European Cup – the first being the Champions League – also marks the end of the Normandy adventure for Pauline. After two years at the ALCL, she will return to Metz, her training club. A departure on good terms and with the feeling of accomplishment. “We managed to keep the team in Pro A (Editor’s note: the maintenance was acquired this Tuesday, March 29 thanks to a victory against Issy-les-Moulineaux), that was the goal of the club. After our great run in the European Cup, it would be great to win the final.”
Born in 1997 in Lunéville, in Meurthe-et-Moselle, Pauline Chasselin discovered table tennis at the age of 7, by chance. “I was swimming, the pool closed. My mother signed me up for the table tennis club because she didn’t want me to stay without playing a sport.” A mother who knew table tennis “a little” for having been among the hundred best French players, anyway! “At the beginning, the ping, I didn’t like it that much. I went there more for my mother: I have always respected my parents a lot. It took me a long time to appreciate this sport.”
And yet, Pauline reveals herself quickly. Barely a few months after her first racquet shots, still unclassified, she replaced a player at an interdepartmental competition at short notice. She beats everyone. Spotted and followed closely, she joined the Creps (Centre for resources, expertise and sports performance) in Nancy. “I was 11 years old, I had to leave the family home… I cried for the whole first week! I had already left without my parents for an internship, of course, but this was a real departure. Pauline hangs on. “After three weeks it was fine. I was the youngest, the atmosphere was nice with the other young people, footballers, volleyball players… I had a great time.”
The rest of the course is the Insep (National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance) in Paris, and the discovery of the high level in competition, club and team of France. In 2014, she returned from the European Junior Championships with the team gold medal and two bronze medals in singles and doubles. “But I didn’t like Insep, the state of mind didn’t suit me. I’m more of a feminist, and I couldn’t stand certain behaviors towards sportswomen…” Pauline therefore decides to return to Lorraine and immediately achieves a great individual performance: she becomes vice-champion of France in singles. With Metz, she is champion of France in 2016, in 2017, and European champion ETTU 2018. Pauline Chasselin is however not fully fulfilled, is looking for her table tennis. In 2020, she scrambles and solicits the ALCL Grand Quevilly, a Pro A club less prestigious and less ambitious than Metz. “I didn’t play enough in Metz where there are four or five top players for three places. I felt that I needed to leave to find myself, to gain confidence. I contacted Grand Quevilly, the feeling was immediately good with Guillaume Liot, the coach. Only disappointment, Pauline leaves Metz in full confinement. “I left without being able to really say goodbye. I was sad, this is my training club.
In Grand Quevilly, within a team made up of French players – a rare occurrence in table tennis – Pauline Chasselin finds exactly what she had come for. She plays a lot, and wins very often – 70% wins in her first season – which allows the team to stay in Pro A. “I have matured, serenity. The status of leader of a team reinforced me, I felt that my role was important. Her performances earned her being selected for the French Olympic team, as a substitute, last summer. “The Olympic Games were a childhood dream! I still get chills talking about it even though I didn’t play and was in the stands.” She continues in the fall with the European Championships, where the French women’s team wins the bronze medal, a historic result. Pauline Chasselin, 147th player in the world, ranked 2nd French player, has clearly changed in dimension. And ambitions. “The Olympics gave me a little something extra. I said to myself: Paris 2024 is for me!” To participate in the Paris Olympic Games, she must be among the best French women, progress in the world rankings, make her selection obvious. “It goes through participation in international competitions. It’s difficult being in a team like Grand Quevilly, where I have to play every game. Metz made me a great offer which will allow me to play in Pro A and the Champions League with the team, while leaving me time for individual tournaments. And time to train, even recharge… “Since the end of the 2020-2021 season, I have chained the Olympics, the European championships, the French championship and the European cup. I only spent four weeks at home, the rest of the time I’m on the move, on the plane, on the road. In March, I played in Oman, Singapore, Qatar…”
At the same time, Pauline is preparing her retraining, but without haste. “High-level sport will not wait for me, studies, yes! I want to give everything for the ping, to have no regrets at 40. Ping is my passion and my profession!” In the third year of Staps, specialty APA (adapted physical activities), Pauline intends to work with people with disabilities, or even become an occupational therapist. “Even if I can’t devote myself fully to it at the moment, even if I find myself with students 4 or 5 years younger than me, the studies remind me that there is something else besides the sport of high level. It brings me stability, opens my mind, allows me to meet other people. It’s wonderful what we experience as a top athlete, but we must not forget the sacrifices we make.
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