RANVIER Pauline

Personal Information

Residence Paris, FRA

Occupation Armed Forces Athlete

Languages English, French

Higher education Coaching, Sport Studies - University Paris-Est Creteil: France

License number 14041994001

Club

Upcoming Events

Sport Specific Information

When and where did you begin this sport? She began fencing at age nine in Paris, France. At age 16 she left the family home to join a national junior training programme in southern France before moving to the National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance [INSEP] in Paris at age 19.

Why this sport? She discovered the sport after there was a fencing demonstration at her school. "I tried fencing because at the time I liked Zorro. I loved it from the start and signed up to a club the following year. I love the combat and duel aspect of the sport, which demands a lot of concentration, determination, coordination, precision, endurance, and self-control. There are a lot of values in fencing that I admire a lot. I started with the foil, like most children. It's the weapon with the smallest target area, and there are lots of rules - it's not necessarily the first to touch who scores, like with epee, so there's a lot of tactics involved. It's like a game of chess, but physical. That's what I love with this weapon, every match is different and anyone can beat anyone at any given moment. We've seen the best in the world lose in the first round to non-seeded fencers, and vice versa. That's what is so amazing about this discipline."

Club / Team Melun Val de Seine [CMVS]: France

Name of coach Yann Detienne [national]

Training Regime She has two training sessions per day at the National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance [INSEP] in Paris, France.

Handedness Right

General Interest

Nicknames Paulette (escrime-ffe.fr, 22 Jun 2018)

Hobbies Cinema, creating social media content. (ffescrime.fr, 01 Jan 2024)

Memorable sporting achievement Winning silver in the team foil event at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. "Especially our semifinal where we fought off a resurgent Italy. I will never forget that." (iledefrance.fr, 03 May 2024)

Hero / Idol French judokas Clarisse Agbegnenou and Teddy Riner, French biathlete Martin Fourcade, Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic, French fencer Brice Guyart. (iledefrance.fr, 03 May 2024; sortiraparis.com, 08 Mar 2024)

Sporting philosophy / motto "Behind the mask, I think we're all a little different, we have two personalities. I'm someone who is fairly calm, very active in everything I do, but once I put a fencing mask on I transform completely, almost into an animal. I'm willing to die on the track to win a match. I'm willing to push myself to my limits. It's like there's a raging will inside you. Once you put on the mask, fear disappears, it's a sign that the duel has begun and you must be ready. The tension that you feel in a match is so great that we are transformed, almost like an animal ready to pounce." (Facebook profile, 11 Oct 2023)

Awards and honours In 2021 she was named a Knight of the National Order of Merit in France. (legifrance.gouv.fr, 08 Sep 2021)

Ambitions To win a gold medal at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. (leparisien.fr, 04 Mar 2023)

Other information OCCUPATION
In 2018 she joined the French Army through the 'Army of Champions' initiative for elite athletes. "I am also a soldier. I am hired by the army, as part of a scheme that allows a few French athletes to benefit from military status and to ensure financial stability. We owe them about 20 days [of service] a year. They can, for example, ask us to intervene on some events or come to do commando training courses. We are at their disposal. After the [2020] Olympic Games in Tokyo I will need to find a job, but in the meantime I benefit from a contract with the French army through to Paris 2024 [Olympic Games], so that is one area where I can think about a professional career." (Instagram profile, 05 May 2024; lesportaufeminin.fr, 26 Jun 2020; LinkedIn profile, 01 Jan 2019)

FURTHER EDUCATION
After studying coaching and sports training at University Paris-Est Creteil between 2014 and 2017, she completed a master's degree in sports management business administration at the Sports Management School in Courbevoie, France, in 2020. (LinkedIn profile, 01 Feb 2020)