It was just an ordinary traffic check. Mélanie Lemée, a 25-year-old agent, however lost her life in the performance of her duties on July 4, struck by a driver who refused to comply. The announcement of this drama provoked a strong emotion in the ranks of the police, but also in the world of French sport.
Single and childless, the young woman was recognized within her brigade, the gendarmerie of Aiguillon, in the Lot-et-Garonne, and in the world of judo for her skill on the tatamis, which she frequented since her 4 years.
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Originally from Orne, Mélanie Lemée initially intended for a high-level sporting career, but a rupture of the cruciate ligaments in 2015, pushed her to leave Insep. At 20, his track record already had something to impress, with several bronze medals in the youth category championships in France and a 5th place in the European junior cup.
Cut off from her momentum, the young woman had chosen, during her convalescence, to take the gendarmerie competition, for which she was already a reservist. “ I have zero regret over my previous life. I gained in maturity with this episode ”, she explained to Ouest-France in 2017. She also joined the French military team of Judo, thanks to which she brought back several titles to Aiguillon. Bronze medal at the military world championships in 2016, she also won two national military titles, in 2016 and 2018, a " pride " for her brigade, as La Dépêche specifies .
" One of my sisters in arms "
His disappearance drew many tributes in the French sports community. Clarisse Agbégnénou, quadruple world champion in judo, paid tribute to her on social networks, calling her " sister in arms ". Teddy Rinner and former athlete Maryse Éwanjé-Épée also extended their condolences to the family of the victim.
“ Mélanie was a very good living, who loved life and her friends. (...) On the tatami, he is someone solid, lively and valiant. We could count on her, in our team. It was a very good judokate, "said Michel Ménardon, president of the departmental judo committee of Orne, in remarks reported by Ouest-France .
