The championship took place from September 16 to 19 in Chateauroux Villers.
The week before the championships, we did a last training session in Saintes. Everything went very well. We were remarkably well received by the flying club, which I would like to thank warmly on my behalf and the other participants. Everybody was really at the top and they allowed us to train in really exceptional conditions.
We arrived in Châteauroux on September 15 in the afternoon, after a one hour flight from Saintes to Châteauroux. In the evening at the briefing, we made the draw for the 1st program of the next day. I drew number 11, out of 20 competitors.
The next day, for the first program, the known one, I flew in the middle of the afternoon. The flight went very well, I was very happy with myself: a few small mistakes, but overall, a performance I was very satisfied with. I saw points of improvement for the French Open on my program design. I got a very honorable average of 77.151% on this program.
On the second day of flight, for the unknown program, I flew in 5th position. Since this year there is a new rule for the order of passage, which means that you can't be in the first position several times, which is quite good. On the first flight I went to the middle, then on the second flight I went to the beginning, and on the last program I went to the end.
This second flight went very well, I made a flight that I experienced in an extraordinary way, I was very happy with my performance, dynamic, precise, well framed. Result: a great average of 79.508%.
On the third and last day of competition, we did the unknown program #2. I came in 20th place, which was last in my Elite group. The pressure quickly built up throughout the day, as the level was extremely high. I saw the results, which were really huge and I realized at that moment the general level of the drivers in Elite, knowing that the French top 10 is often included in the world top 15. All this made me feel a bit pressured. But I knew how to stay calm and thanks to my good physical, mental and technical preparation, I was able to start the race in complete serenity, with the certainty that I was going to do as well as my friends.
And that's what happened, I did a great flight, I was very happy with myself, I was very moved by my performance. I didn't pay too much attention to the marks, that wasn't my objective, which was to deliver my best level, and to show the best version of what I was capable of. I received an excellent score of 79.471%.
Thanks to my overall score of 78.728%, I am ranked 6th out of 20 overall, and 1st female, which gives me the title of 2020 French Elite Champion.
I was able to observe the best and I realize the work that remains to be done to reach the top world level. I know today that it is possible. I continue to work very hard so that in the next competitions, I can get even closer to the level of our champions, since I finish just behind 5 world champions. I am really proud, whatever the outcome, to have reached this level. I want to thank again my sponsors, my team and all the people who supported me since the beginning, even in difficult times, and of course my great coach, Pierre Varloteaux.
New objective, the French Open which will take place from October 13 to 16 in Orange Plan de Dieu, where I will give my best again and I hope to tell you a new beautiful adventure very soon.
SMOKE ON, SMILE ON !
Comments