But what went well in the head of Laurent Tillie in the fifth to the unbearable suspense between France and Poland in Tokyo?
At 12-6 in their favor and three points from a semi-final in the Olympic tournament, the French players witnessed, dumbfounded, a totally unusual sequence from their coach who suddenly found the relaxation of his young years of international (between 1982 and 1995).
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While his Blues admitted defeat on a smash from Polish giant Leon, Tillie literally threw himself to the ground at the other end of the field to try to catch the ball! A dive-reflex which caused the laughter of the commentators on
France Televisions
but which did not, fortunately, not distract the Tricolores. After getting up, Tillie recovered from her emotions by returning to her bench with calm and serenity as if nothing had happened. Just before witnessing the triumph of France in a match of exceptional intensity against the double world champions (21-25, 26-22, 21-25, 15-9).
The boss of the Blues, who will drop his post at the end of the Olympics in favor of the Brazilian Bernardo Rezende (two Olympic titles), returned to this completely improvised madness. "
Go get that ball? It was instinct. I was caught up in the game like the players. I knew that we could not have it and I thought that the referee was not going to see it,
”commented the laughing eye the former receiver-striker with 406 selections who keeps, despite the weight of the years (58 years), a hell of a relaxation on the ground.
