Tennis. Danielle Bombardier, living memory of tennis with a human face – tennis

At the top of a very boring 2021 Roland-Garros for the French delegation, studying the recollections of an octogenarian with such a full of life thoughts is one thing to rejoice. With “50 years behind the scenes of world tennis”, Danielle Bombardier, alias “Babie”, traces the evolution of a sport that grew to become widespread and media protection within the Nineteen Seventies. First hooked up to participant relations on the Paris match then on different occasions on the worldwide circuit, she is aware of everybody, and vice versa. But she has her favorites and her Turkish faces, which she accepts with out advanced.

Beyond the autobiographical train, the Franco-Moroccan takes a contrasting have a look at tennis – particularly male – of yesterday and in the present day. Tennis with a human face, behind an more and more clean facade. It is in all legitimacy that it awards the nice factors, to its little proteges (from Yannick Noah, who indicators the preface, to… Benoît Paire), as a lot because the unhealthy ones, to stars much less scintillating in his eyes (Philippe Chatrier , Jimmy Connors, Andre Agassi).

Despite the well being disaster, she retains the flame alive, at 82, with this leitmotif which sums up the character, p.67: “Nothing that makes me more happy than an organizer who tells me: ‘Danielle, we are counting on you ! ” This is my reserve of kifs! “. Communicative pleasure, for certain.

“50 years behind the scenes of world tennis”, by Danielle Bombardier, printed by Le seeks midi, 224 p., € 18.

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