“For any field hockey player, India is a dream. The stadiums are just incredible, people are cheering us on like football stars, it’s really something you have to make the most of…” Stanislas Branicki, 20, midfielder for the France team, is looking forward to take the stage in the World Cup this Friday morning (5:30 a.m. in France) in Bhubaneshwar, near the Bay of Bengal.
In pool A, the Blues (12th in the ranking) challenge Australia, 1st nation in the international ranking. Then, they will face Argentina (7th) and South Africa (14th) to try to open the door to the round of 16. “We try to stay as positive as possible, continues the bronze medalist of the Worlds under 21 in 2021. We have prepared well, we have good feelings. In our last competitions, we didn’t get the results we wanted, we were in a bit of a negative phase, we had lost our smiles. »
At the beginning of December, in South Africa, Fred Be’s players fell from a height during the Nations Cup. A test that they saw themselves winning and during which they went through (5th), missing their sesame for the Pro League, the Championship which brings together the best countries during the season and allows them to generate experience.
Paris 2024 “in a little corner of the head”
A halt for a group in progress, turned towards the Paris 2024 objective. , 2016 and 2020, is indeed qualified as an organizer.
“Against Australia, we are going to go there without asking questions, breathes Branicki who, like almost all of the French workforce, evolves year-round in Belgium, one of the strongholds of the Old Continent with the Netherlands or Germany. We will do the best we can, anything is possible. Whatever happens, we will have to stay united for the matches after. The most important is South Africa (January 16 at 12:30 p.m. in France). It’s the one we absolutely have to win. »
The Blues aim to do as well as four years ago, already in India, where they reached the quarter-finals. “We had a little less good, but we regained confidence and automatisms, observes defender Jean-Baptiste Forgues, 30 years old and 173 selections on the counter since 2011. Four years ago, we had a team really young and inexperienced enough to attack a World Cup. Today, there are still about ten players from that time, our average age is higher, we arrive with more maturity, experience and the young people will bring us their speed and vitality. We are more sure of our strength. »
In The Mecca of lacrosse, there is no question of thinking too early about Paris 2024. “We have it in a little corner of our heads, we talked about it a little. It’s still the end goal for us, ”slips Branicki. “It’s fast approaching but the World Cup is enough on its own, corrects Forgues. Then there will be a European Championship this summer. But let’s say that in previous Olympics, there was always this pressure of qualifying. There, it took us a nice thorn out of our feet. It’s more comfortable, it makes it easier for us to get there. »