Spotlight on the game of the oval ball made in Sète (Hérault). This variant of petanque, whose ball shape is directly inspired by that of the oval ball, caught the eye of the Andros group from Lot.
The official supplier of the Rugby World Cup has installed two fields in the Marseille fan zone (Bouches-du-Rhône) to discover the game.
"We are not talking about cochonnet but olivette"
"It is played in 15 points in tribute to rugby, explains its inventor, José Llinarès, who was conquered by the values carried by this sport. The players do not have their feet tanquated as in petanque, they can move behind a line to shoot. And we are not talking about cochonnet but olivette. »
The promotion of the oval ball game is done through the charity association Les Copains d'abord, which José Llinarès chairs. "It's up to us to sell the 150 triplets we had made (180 euros for three balls). The entire proceeds will be donated to the Montpellier Breast Institute, specialized in the fight against cancer. »
After a first tournament in Saint-Tropez (Var) with the manufacturer Boulenciel, the villages around Sète take over and give visibility. "Neither the Stade Toulousain nor the MHR in Montpellier have accompanied us in this adventure," regrets José Llinarès. But never mind, this Thursday, September 21, it is another Sétois, André Lubrano, former player of the XV of France, who must make the trip to Marseille for the match France-Namibia as a proud ambassador of this petanque of a new kind.
