Loïc Lalague: “Don’t Show Your Weaknesses”

It was in Rouen last March that 22-year-old Loïc Lalague went on to win the French collegiate championship title. It was a hard-fought victory, but one marked above all by the good spirits of this great team from Montpellier—composed of five boxers and led by Atmane Ben Rabia. “Wehad a lot of laughs; the atmosphere was really, really cool,” says the young boxer.

"Self-control"

Loïc discovered combat sports at age 16. He started with taekwondo, then moved on to English boxing, before switching to French boxing and kickboxing two years ago. As part of the “feet-and-fists” boxing group, kickboxing is a discipline that originated in the United States and Japan in the 1960s. Fights take place under various rules, ranging from knockouts (K.O.) to “soft contact,” as is the case in college competition: “We’renot allowed to strike; we can only press the attack. You have to control your emotions and be careful about what you’re doing.”

It’s a level of mastery that the athlete particularly appreciates, as does the idea of “pushing himselfto the limit .”There’s always someone stronger than you, so you have to have grit, give it your all, and above all, not show your weaknesses—even when you’re tired. ” Fatigue doesn’t seem to affect this hydrogeology student, who juggles his second-year master’s program with two to four training sessions a week, plus jogging and rock climbing… “Itdoesn’t leave much time for anything else, but that’s not the hardest part for me.”

"Daily monitoring"

Because for athletes, the thrill of victory often goes hand in hand with a strict diet—Loïc’s bane! Competing in the under-77-kg weight class, he monitors his weight daily before competitions to ensure he doesn’t exceed that limit and risk “facingopponents much bigger than me .” ” It’s a constraint he won’t miss in his future career, which he envisions not in a boxing ring but rather working with “groundwater. It’s concrete, it’s visual—I love it!” In any case, boxing has taught this future hydrogeologist to be wary… of still waters!

UM AthletesUM the Top!

The University of Montpellier honors its medalists from the World, European, and French University Championships at an annual ceremony organized by SUAPS. Read the profiles of these champions who juggle the demanding dual life of being both a student and an athlete. Read all the profiles…