French boccia player
Aurélie Aubert (born 9 June 1997) is a French boccia player. She is a Paralympic champion at the Summer Paralympics in 2024.
Career
Aubert began playing boccia in 2010,[1] at the age of 12 or 13.[2][3] Not liking sports at that age, she says she came to boccia because the educators at the Richebourg rehabilitation center, where she was a resident, had promised her, in exchange, "lots of squares" of chocolate. There she also met Claudine Llop Cliville, then a nurse, who became her playing assistant and coach.[4][5] Aubert trains twice a week, for about ten hours. She is supported in her practice by a mental trainer, video analysis and physiotherapy.[3]
In 2023, Aubert took part in the European Boccia Championships in Rotterdam. She finished fourth in the BC1 category.[6] Captaining the French team,[3] she competed in the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris. She qualified for the women's individual BC1 final by eliminating Bermudian Yushae DeSilva-Andrade in a tie-break.[7] She then won the gold medal by beating Singaporean Jeralyn Tan in the final, despite an error at the end of the match; she refused the last three balls, wrongly believing that her opponent had no more. She still won the game 2-0, 5-0 and 5-3.[2] This was the very first French Paralympic medal in the sport[2] and the first international title of her career for Aubert.[8] She said she hoped that her victory would give more visibility to boccia.[2] She was named flag bearer of the French delegation for the closing ceremony of the Paralympic Games alongside shooter Tanguy de La Forest.[9]
Aubert is a member of the Win'27 disabled sports club in Aubevoye, Eure.[5]
Personal life
Aubert has cerebral palsy due to a lack of oxygen at birth.[2] She lives in a foster family.[3]
References
