They all have this same memory, this same image of Diane Parry.
That of a little girl of “4 or 5 years old” who followed her father and her three older brothers to the Boulogne-Billancourt tennis club and who “never stayed in place”.
A ball of energy and happiness.
Already !
“She was at the edge of the court and played with tennis or soccer balls, she was already very talented.
Educators from the football club even wanted to recruit her, but she always preferred tennis, ”recalls Philippe Joliot, general manager of the TCBB.
The TCBB, Diane Parry's lifelong club.
“During the Covid, she was asked to intervene for sessions on social networks, she always said yes”, appreciates Joliot.
It was in the Le Gallo stadium, located on the banks of the Seine, a few hectometres from the family home and the alleys of Roland-Garros, that the blue revelation of the French Grand Slam (with Léolia Jeanjean) hit his first yellow balls and dreamed of a great career.
Read alsoRoland-Garros: “I am not surprised to see her at this level” … Léolia Jeanjean, a young 26-year-old first
A career that has taken on another dimension in recent days.
The 19-year-old Frenchwoman has just dismissed the Czech Barbora Krejcikova, world No. 2 and defending champion, and Colombian Camila Osorio from her route.
She faces this Friday the American Sloane Stephens to win her sesame for the 8th finals.
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"It's nice to see her there, there's a lot of emotion because we've come a long way together, says Cécile Palicot, 50, including 40 years at the club, and first coach of the future nugget between her 4 and 11 year.
She was the youngest of the group but she was already different.
She was the most determined, the sportiest.
She was good at any sport.
"We had to spot her, see her, she stood out," continues Gilles Galmisch, sports director at the club.
At 5 years old, not all children have these qualities.
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“Federer is his idol, his inspiration”
Physical skills and this obsession, already, of the beautiful gesture.
It is no coincidence that his role model remains Roger Federer.
“She must have had a poster of him in her room, smiles Cécile Palicot.
It is his idol, his inspiration, even today.
She wanted to have her one-handed backhand.
When she was little, a coach wanted her to keep a two-handed backhand.
In vain.
Parry eventually got what she wanted and started playing one-handed when she was about 12 or 13 years old.
“She is determined, she knows what she wants,” continues her first coach.
Parry will always be Parry.
But the esthete must learn to become more pragmatic.
“Diane likes to play pretty.
We in Spain say that if you want to see something pretty, you go to the theatre.
Here you have to win, slams Gonzalo Lopez Sanchis, his Spanish coach.
She must learn to cook, know how to use her panoply, take a risk.
Sometimes she gets frustrated but she has the game to destabilize her opponents.
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At 12, scoliosis forced her to wear a corset and pushed her away from the courts for six months.
But instead of admitting defeat, little Diane takes the opportunity to work on her posture.
And come back stronger than ever.
She passed through the stages at lightning speed and joined the French National Tennis Center at the age of 16.
She is not upset.
It is located just opposite the Jean de la Fontaine high school where she attended her schooling after having attended the benches of the Dupanloup primary school... located on the other side of the boulevard d'Auteuil, opposite the Roland-Garros stadium .
Some will say that there is no chance.
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Tennis was a given in the life of the Parrys.
Joël, the patriarch, continues to play leisure matches every Saturday, his three older brothers all practiced before heading to the soccer fields – one of them went to the United States to play in university – and his little sister Alyssia also plays.
She is a child of the little yellow ball.
"It's her project, she writes her story but she is supported by all her family", explains Galmisch.
In the fall, Diane Parry left the family cocoon to move in with her boyfriend… 100 m from her parents' home.
Well brought up, simple, kind, good living...
“Discreet”, “humble”, “possessed”, “head on shoulders”, “well brought up in a balanced family”, Diane Parry is also a young girl in a hurry.
From birth, moreover, since she arrived in the world a few days ahead of schedule, which explains why she was born on September 1 in Nice, where her parents were on vacation, and not in the Paris region.
In 2019, she was crowned junior world champion and made a name for herself at Roland-Garros by becoming, at 16, the youngest player in a decade to win a match in the "big" table.
This Friday, she can climb to the round of 16 of "her" tournament.
“I still remember when we played children's team matches at the TCBB and, there, ten years later, she played Roland-Garros, smiles Emma Trouillet, her childhood friend.
Chatrier center court has always made him dream.
She lived next door and walked past it every day.
It was a dream.
It is magic.
But she deserves it.
She's such a simple, sweet girl.
Before her second round, she was more stressed knowing her dog had been alone for hours than her match.
One of his brothers had to fetch Cilau, the one-year-old shepherd.
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With Diane, Parry is also a party.
"She's a good living, she never says no to a good restaurant and to evenings with friends or with her family," says Emma Trouillet.
After each victory, her brothers celebrate and she can't wait to do it with them... but not right away.
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After going back and forth in the South, where she works and lives, Emma Trouillet will be present again this Thursday in the box alongside the Parry clan.
But this time, she intends to stay in the capital.
“I put my week down, I'm sure it will continue to win games, I believe in it.
"At this level, each match represents a challenge when you are 97th in the world," continues Cécile Palicot.
But with his atypical game and the incredible support of the public, anything is possible.
“Diane is convinced and slips:” I do not intend to stop there.
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