Yann Garric, the rising star of baton twirling, settles in Lodève

Yann is currently taking part in a training course at the Pierre Ramadier multi-purpose hall in Lodève. Louise Gerbaud

The high-level athlete joins the Lodève club and settles in Lodève to pursue his sporting ambitions.

« I started twirling when I was two years old, because my two older sisters who did it got me into it. Since then, I have never given up” »,” says Yann Garric. This young twirler has just won first place in the team category at the international baton twirling championship, which was held in Helsingborg, Sweden, from August 4 to 11. This rising star of the discipline, aged 20, has chosen to settle in Lodève next September to continue living his passion and pass it on in turn.

Yann Garric at the end of the solo event during the international championship. Ali-photo.ch

"I want to pass on my experience"

As soon as he returned, Yann joined the Lodévois club and followed up with a training course to prepare for future competitions. He also wanted to contribute to the development of the local club." I want to pass on my experience and take the athletes as far as possible" he explains. The city, which he already knows, reminds him of his childhood village. “Here there are people I really like, it's a bit like my second family” he says with a smile on his face. Eager to start the year, he has already found an apartment and a job as a supervisor at the Joseph Vallot high school.

Yann is currently taking part in an internship at the Pierre Ramadier multipurpose hall in Lodève. Louise Gerbaud

Originally from the village of Poucharramet, near Toulouse, the champion took his first steps in the discipline at a very young age: ” I was born with a stick in my hands ", he jokes. Like his sisters, he devotes himself to this discipline that combines dance, gymnastics and stick handling. But he is also one of the few men to practice it, although it is becoming more inclusive: " where we see more and more boys and that is good for those who are subjected to comments at school. " He himself has experienced harassment because of the stereotypes associated with this sport. In Lodève, Yann is delighted to have two other boys in the club: “”you”can flourish very well in an artistic sport as a boy. “

An already significant track record

Throughout his adolescence, the athlete played in several major clubs, notably in Rieumes, Villefranche-de-Lauragais and Blagnac. There he later met his choreographer Didier Boudy: “ If I'm here, it's thanks to him and my sister Élisa who trains me ", he confides.

The Selah France team during the world championship in Helsingborg, Sweden. Ali-photo.ch

In 2022, he won his first medal by becoming junior world vice-champion, then European solo champion the following year. During the world competition, he found himself facing competitors from Japan, Italy, the United States and many others. “I was really looking forward to it, I was full of adrenaline”. With his team Selah France, notably composed of Alexia Dessy and Jason Travers, both choreographers at the Lodévois club, they became world champions in the Team Freestyle category. ” We owe this to our team spirit. We wanted to thrill the public, to make them remember us ". Thanks to French performances, " France dethrones Japan for the first time and wins the combined world championship" he enthuses, with a sparkle in his eyes.

As for his personal goals for next year, Yann is clear: he intends to defend his title of European champion.

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