The year 2016 has just started, but for the dozens of French athletes who have been preparing for the Olympic Games for over 3 years, Rio is already just around the corner.
To help lesser-known athletes prepare under the best conditions, the Ministry of Urban Affairs, Youth and Sports launched the Performance Pact a year ago.
This partnership system between companies and high-level athletes now allows 176 athletes to fully dedicate themselves to their quest for medals.
Émilie Fer (canoe kayaking), Hamilton Sabot (gymnastics), Charlotte Bonnet (swimming), and Elodie Lorandi (para swimming). These athletes’ names may not ring a bell, yet this summer they each have a great chance of returning from Rio with a medal around their neck. Originating from the Alpes-Maritimes and all medalists at the London Olympics four years ago, they are among those athletes who, despite victory, will never become superstars due to their disciplines.
Helping these under-recognized athletes finance their Olympic preparation and best balance a sports career with professional life is the goal of the Performance Pact launched in December 2014 by the Secretary of State for Sports, Thierry Braillard.
In just over a year, 80 companies have volunteered and hired one or more athletes with the potential to win medals in Rio. These range from SMEs and start-ups to very large international companies like Allianz, Coca-Cola, Nike, The Walt Disney Company, and Dailymotion.
These companies had two choices: sign an image contract with the athlete (66% of the contracts) or a work contract (34% of the contracts) by offering flexible hours for optimal sports preparation and sometimes even offering career transition after the sports career.
176 athletes benefit from this initiative, among them, 41% are women and 19.4% are para athletes.
While the benefits for athletes are obvious, the companies that play the game do not do so by chance.
The Performance Pact allows companies not only to associate their image with that of a champion but also to invest in employees with exceptional skills (self-transcendence, performance, the will to succeed…) and spread these values internally among employees. Associating one’s name with an event like the Olympic Games can only be beneficial to a company, especially if the sponsored athlete is successful in winning a medal.
The signing of these contracts complements the [law of November 27, 2015](https://www.nicepremium.fr/sports,2/sport-france,87/sportifs-de-haut-niveau-une-loi-contre-leur-precarite,18176.html?var_mode=preview), which secures the legal and social status of high-level athletes and ensures them work accident coverage.
In the Alpes-Maritimes, of the 31 athletes from the [Team 06](https://www.nicepremium.fr/sports,2/les-alpes-maritimes-mobilisees-derriere-leurs-athletes-pour-les-jo-2016,17885.html) vying for a place at the Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games, 8 are involved with the Performance Pact. The most promising ones, of course.
In addition to the 4 medalists from London mentioned earlier (Émilie Fer, Hamilton Sabot, Charlotte Bonnet, and Elodie Lorandi), Samir Ait Said (gymnastics), Rouguy Diallo (athletics), Loic Pietri (judo), and Sofia Bouvet (sailing) are added. Supported respectively by Disney, Nike, Allianz, and GDF Suez, there is no doubt they will do their utmost to earn the trust placed in them.
by Jordan Perronneau
Photo credit: The Presidency of the Republic
