BOUDIAF Saoussen

Personal Information

Residence Roubaix, FRA

Occupation Athlete

Languages French

Higher education Commerce - National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance [INSEP]: Paris, FRA

License number 31121993003

Club

Upcoming Events

Sport Specific Information

When and where did you begin this sport? She began fencing as a child in Roubaix, France. "I started fencing very early. It was one of the trimester sports that we had at Muselet primary school in Roubaix [France]. At that time, when I arrived at the fencing room, I was only offered sabre. There was no spot left for foil and epee."

Why this sport? "When I was younger I would spend my days in front of the television. My aunt was against this and asked me to find a physical activity to do. The fencing hall was just two minutes from home. In the beginning, fencing was a hobby, but I found there was only one thing I wanted to do - win."

Club / Team Cercle d'Escrime de Roubaix: France

Name of coach Ouassila Yemmi [national], ALG; Cedric Wallard [personal]

Handedness Right

General Interest

Nicknames Soussou (lavoixdunord.fr, 20 Apr 2013)

Hobbies Reading. (mediterraneennes.com, 09 Feb 2023)

Most influential person in career Her grandmother. (escrime-ffe.fr, 08 Mar 2013)

Injuries In early 2015 she tore a muscle in her thigh. She was unable to compete for two months. (lemondedelescrime.wordpress.com, 25 Feb 2015)

Ambitions To compete at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. (LinkedIn profile, 01 Apr 2023)

Other information REPRESENTING ALGERIA
Born to an Algerian mother and an Ivorian father in Roubaix, France, she was raised in France by her aunt and her grandmother after her mother died when she was age six. She initially represented France, including at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, before deciding to retire from fencing in June 2020. She was later convinced to return to the sport by the Algerian Fencing Federation, and she began representing the nation in October 2021 to honour the memory of her late grandmother who had always wanted her to compete for Algeria. "I lost my mother when I was very young and then I was raised by my aunt and my grandmother. Resuming competition after stopping in 2020, and then joining the Algerian team in September 2021 is my way of paying tribute to my grandmother. She dreamed so much of seeing me defend the colours of my country of origin. [In 2017] I had a lot of trouble coping with my failure at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. I doubted and questioned my sporting career. It pushed me to take a step back and stop fencing for almost a year. Then I was not even in the French team for the 2020 Games in Tokyo due to my break from the sport in 2017. As a result, at the time I felt more comfortable joining Algeria. The prospect of competing at the 2024 Games in Paris did the rest." (olympics.com, 08 Nov 2023; LinkedIn profile, 01 Apr 2023; mediterraneennes.com, 09 Feb 2023; fondaskreyol.org, 05 Jul 2022; lapatrienews.dz, 14 Nov 2021; lavoixdunord.fr, 28 Jun 2020)