LEFORT Enzo

Personal Information

Family Partner Kitesy, daughter Indya [2019]

Residence Paris, FRA

Occupation Armed Forces Athlete, Photographer

Languages English, French

Higher education Kinesiology - National School of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation [ENKRE]: Saint-Maurice, FRA

License number 29091991001

Club

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Sport Specific Information

When and where did you begin this sport? He began fencing at age five in Basse-Terre, Guadeloupe.

Why this sport? He was inspired to take up the sport after watching French fencer Laura Flessel-Colovic compete at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta on television. "The foil suits me, because the objective and main priority is to attack. It's more lively, and I am more of an active fencer than a tactical one, so it's a weapon that suits me."

Club / Team Cercle d'Escrime Melun Val de Seine [CEMVS]: Paris, FRA

Name of coach Emeric Clos [national], FRA

Training Regime In 2022 he began combining his training with yoga with the aim of preventing injuries. "I asked my trainers to add yoga to my sporting practise. I have the chance of having a very understanding staff so, for example, when the rest of the guys are doing some strength workout at the gym, I practise yoga."

Handedness Right

General Interest

Nicknames Zozo (Facebook profile, 12 Jan 2021)

Hobbies Photography, fashion, comics. (lequipe.fr, 09 Sep 2021; enzolefort.com, 01 Dec 2020)

Memorable sporting achievement Winning gold in team foil at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (TV5Monde Info YouTube channel, 01 Aug 2021)

Hero / Idol French fencer and politician Laura Flessel-Colovic. (rmcsport.bfmtv.com, 04 Dec 2021; actu.fr, 30 Jul 2019)

Injuries He missed the 2022 European Championships in Antalya, Turkiye, due to a calf injury. (lequipe.fr, 17 Jan 2023)

He injured his left knee in 2012. (leparisien.fr, 28 Jan 2013)

Sporting philosophy / motto "We need to fail in order to improve." (sportmag.fr, 03 Mar 2023)

Awards and honours He was flag bearer for France at the opening ceremony of the 2017 World Military Championships in Acireale, Italy. (Instagram profile, 13 Sep 2017; Facebook page, 13 Sep 2017)

In 2016 he was named Knight of the National Order of Merit by the French government. In 2021 he was named a Knight of the National Order of the Legion of Honour by the French government. (legifrance.gouv.fr, 01 Dec 2016, 10 Sep 2021; Federation Francaise d'Escrime Twitter profile, 13 Sep 2021)

In 2016 he received the medal of the city of Melun, France. (actu.fr, 15 Oct 2016)

Milestones In 2022 he became the third French fencer to have won back-to-back men's individual foil world championship titles, following Christian D'Oriola [1947, 1949 and 1953, 1954] and Jean-Claude Magnan [1963, 1965]. (SportsDeskOnline, 01 Apr 2024)

Ambitions To win individual and team gold at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris and to compete at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. (lequipe.fr, 17 Jan 2023; leparisien.fr, 15 Jan 2022)

Other information PHOTOGRAPHY
He became passionate about photography after coming into contact with a number of photographers and producers during his career. In 2020 he published a book named 'Behind the Mask', which focuses on the diversity of the French national fencing team. "This project was born out of a desire to make a tribute to the diversity there is within the team. Since I joined it I've been surrounded by people with different origins. And growing up alongside these people allowed me to become aware of different cultures and points of view. I wouldn't be the man I am now without experiencing this diversity. Photography helps me to express my creative side outside fencing." In 2021 he published another book titled 'Hors Piste' [Off Piste], which focuses on Tokyo, Japan, the city where he won gold at the 2020 Olympic Games. (lequipe.fr, 09 Sep 2021; Bros Stories YouTube channel, 12 Jan 2021; enzolefort.com, 01 Dec 2020)

MEDIA
Besides being a photographer, in 2022 he published a manga comic book about his life named 'Enzo'. He also has a podcast named 'Le Rebond' [The Rebound] where he talks with other athletes who have overcome obstacles during their careers. "I came up with this idea while thinking about the career of high performance athletes as we are idolised and listened to when we win and, on the contrary, we find ourselves all alone during our failures. There is also this taboo issue regarding failures as people don't like to talk much about them although they are part of all the improvement process. Without a failure we would never know how far we can get. I have always been curious so I try to bring other things into the sports world. I find it very interesting to do by using different media angles. There's the photography, the manga book and the podcast. All that helps me to have a life balance and to put things into perspective when they are not going well because the life of an athlete is made up of highs and lows." (Le Rebond Podcast Instagram profile, 28 Jun 2023; LinkedIn profile, 01 Mar 2023; europe1.fr, 06 Mar 2023; sportmag.fr, 03 Mar 2023; Instagram profile, 19 Nov 2022)

CARIBBEAN TO EUROPE
He was born in French Guiana, an overseas region of France in the Caribbean, to parents from Guadeloupe. The family moved to Gourbeyre, Guadeloupe, when he was age three. As a teenager his talent saw him offered the chance to move to mainland France to join the national training hub [Pole France] in Chatenay-Malabry, and in 2010 he entered the National Institute for Sport, Expertise and Performance [INSEP] in Paris. (horace.co, 2018; INSEP TV YouTube channel, 18 Jan 2017; 97land.com, 22 Aug 2015)

POST-FENCING CAREER
He completed a degree in physiotherapy in 2018, and has also worked as a social media manager for his partner's business and the Sport Etude magazine in France. "Fencing remains an amateur sport that doesn't attract many sponsors. Our careers may last until we are 34 or 35 years old, so I have to add a few more strings to my bow. It helps me to think about other things [than fencing], which is very important if things aren't going well. Our sport is very mental, and you have to be able to just let some things go." (Facebook page, 04 Jul 2018; horace.co, 01 Jun 2018)

OTHER ACTIVITIES
He joined the French air force as part of the 'Army of Champions' programme for elite athletes. (Instagram profile, 08 May 2024; sports.defense.gouv.fr, 18 Sep 2018)