[LUM#5] My Teacher, the Champion
Romain Barras, the 2010 European decathlon champion, is enjoying a newfound sense of peace, far from competition but never too far from the track. At 36, the Calais native is relishing his daily life as a professor at theUFR STAPS and the simple joys of recreational athletics.
He has devoted 15 years of his life to what is perhaps the most demanding discipline in track and field: 10 events combining sprints, long-distance running, jumps, and throws—all to be completed in two days, and with a smile. If possible… Such is the daily life of decathletes, these “strong men” as they are nicknamed, the gods of the stadium who command respect. Indeed, few athletes are capable of running 100 meters in 11 seconds, clearing 5 meters in the pole vault, and sending the javelin soaring beyond 65 meters… “A beautiful sport, heroic in some respects, but a very demanding one that requires enormous dedication and a great deal of self-sacrifice,” sums up the athlete with the gentle gaze and the physique of Hercules.
A life of suffering and hardship punctuated by moments of intense joy, such as on that day of triumph in the summer of 2010, on the track at the European Athletics Championships in Barcelona. A gold medal that served as the crowning achievement of a career often marked by missed opportunities. London 2012 and then Rio 2016—twice, the former CREPS Montpellier athlete missed the grand stage of the Olympic Games, though he did get a taste of the action in 2004 and 2008, even securing a 4th-place finish in Beijing. The end of his career was notably disrupted by persistent groin pain, which kept him away from competition for an extended period.
Sadly, at the age of 36, the northern athlete decided to hang up his spikes, bringing an end to a career that began in 2002. Then came the time for a career change, a period known to be challenging for any professional athlete. His path was clear: teaching. It came naturally to this son of a physical education teacher, who now trains students in sports science in track and field and physical conditioning. Having been on a part-time teaching assignment for several years, Romain Barras can now devote himself fully to his teaching duties.
"Playing volleyball with friends"
This new chapter in his life has allowed him to reconnect with a personal life that had been put on hold, and which he is happily rediscovering. “I now have time to take care of my family life, to go play volleyball with friends whenever I feel like it…”It’s also an opportunity to reconcile with a battered body. “No longer feeling pain with every step”:already a victory for someone who was once a regular at the treatment room. Today, the member of the Stade Olympique de Calais“runs a little”and works up a sweat at CrossFit. It’s not so easy to lose the taste for physical exertion. A pace that, however, bears no resemblance to the 8 to 10 weekly sessions that were long his daily routine.
Although he claims to have stepped back from the sport, Romain Barras is keeping a close eye on a new generation of athletes that looks particularly promising. One standout among them is Kévin Mayer, the silver medalist at the last Olympic Games following a nail-biting duel with American Ashton Eaton, a benchmark and legend in the discipline. With an angelic face and extraordinary physical abilities, he is the ideal poster boy for French decathlon.“Behind Kévin, there are four or five others with great potential,” he is keen to point out. These are athletes he regularly encounters at the French Decathlon Training Center, housed at the CREPS in Montpellier. We can bet that this rather unique coach will certainly inspire the next generation of athletes who dream of one day, like him, standing on the top step of the podium.
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