Between the Seine and the RER C, they are far from their usual room.
By ten degrees on a Thursday afternoon at 4.30 p.m., nine Parisians gathered on the Quai André-Citroën in the 15th arrondissement.
The downpour that had fallen twenty minutes earlier did not discourage them.
Antoine, masked coach of the session and manager of the CrossFit Lutèce room that he founded in 2014 in the district, takes out of the van the whiteboard on which is written the course of the session for the courageous eight.
“You start the warm-up by focusing well on each movement,” he says.
All are far from each other, taking advantage of the space to respect barrier gestures.
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Among them is Anne, delighted to be able to continue the sport outdoors.
“Having exercises that you don't expect, doing a physical activity, seeing people, it's great!
»Rejoices the young 29-year-old surgeon.
Antoine, the manager whose room has been closed for ten months, is also satisfied with this alternative: “People train all year round indoors, there is a side that is nice.
The setting is beautiful and we have a lot of space.
"
For an hour, the eight members will follow together lifting weights, races and other physical exercises on the cobblestones of the quays of the Seine.
For some sessions, the coaches bring rowers, ellipticals.
And nothing can stop these sports fanatics, not even bad weather.
“We are at this place every day, except when it was flooded three weeks ago, says Antoine.
At that time we had settled in a park.
»At 7:30 am or 4:30 pm in the afternoon, the slots are full each time.
The room then gives priority to members who continued to support it during the closure.
A clientele mostly living in the neighborhood.
Local solidarity
“70% of the people live in the surrounding area.
These are people who did not want to see the theater in their neighborhood close either, we feel that the local dimension is very large, ”explains the 36-year-old manager.
“I've been a CrossFit Lutèce customer for five years,” says Anne.
When I arrived in Paris in the 15th century, I found this room and I haven't left it since!
“A surgeon during the day, she puts on her sneakers to reach the meeting point as soon as the opportunity presents itself.
“I come to outdoor sessions as much as I can.
I missed it a lot when it was closed so whenever I have free time I come!
"
Quickly, the session intensifies for these eight athletes who, without a mask, have already forgotten the ambient freshness.
The small group are among those who have continued to support the ward financially even during the lockdown.
“There, these are people who, despite our reimbursement proposal, wanted to continue paying to help us,” explains Antoine.
Unfortunately we refuse a lot of people.
With the sanitary measures we greatly limit the number of people.
"
Even outdoors, the equipment is brought on site by the coach at each session.
/ LP / Icon Sport / Valentin Desbriel
"Outside, we can do anything!"
The breaks are brief, near the improvised cloakroom under the RER bridge.
“Sportingly, outside, we can do anything.
We work as usual on the sessions.
It's just less clean on the ground, ”laughs the coach.
And the cobblestones of the André-Citroën quay, he knows them well.
“For the record, we trained here before opening the venue in 2014!
"
As a return to the sources, but also to habits.
When the exercise circuit begins, the music intensifies.
The faces grimace but all will come back.
At 5.30 p.m. the session ends with a final compulsory exercise, a time trial with the curfew.
An exemption is necessary
If the fitness rooms have been closed since March, if outdoor gatherings are prohibited, certain situations are however "tolerated".
"We resumed as soon as we had confirmation from the prefecture," explains Antoine, manager of a sports hall which offers outdoor lessons.
"Gatherings of more than 6 people on public roads are prohibited except for demonstrations of protest declared to the prefectural authorities (...) which must guarantee compliance with barrier measures", one can read on the government website.
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But it is possible to request and obtain an exemption. What was done by Antoine. “In the texts, it's a bit wobbly. Gatherings organized by private companies are in principle not authorized but the DDCS (Departmental Directorate of Social Cohesion) told us that it was more or less tolerated as long as there is respect for health rules ”, decrypts the manager. With respect for barrier gestures. This Thursday all were more than a meter away and the mask was required for the coach.
