One year from the 2024 Olympics in Paris, the message seems to be getting less and less well between the boss of the high level of French sport, Claude Onesta, and some of the main executives of the federations. Many were surprised at the absence of national technical directors (DTN) during the French sports seminar organized Monday at Insep. It should have been seen as a sign, that of a break up of some of them with the former coach of the French men’s handball team, according to several sources close to the sports movement.
“We have to realize the climate of tension that can exist between us and Claude Onesta and the ANS (National Sports Agency), things are not going well at all. The current is no longer flowing,” confirms one of the 34 French DTNs on condition of anonymity. “The breach of trust is total with the DTNs”, asserts another, who prefers, again, to remain anonymous.
“I’ve never had any concerns, I have no problem with DTNs. If some of them are not necessarily happy, I invite them to come see me to talk about it, my door is always open, “assured AFP Claude Onesta. “Most DTNs rather thank me for what we do for them,” he adds, relegating this sling to a few. “No comment, for the moment,” reacted Ludovic Roye, who chairs the association of DTNs (ASDTN). The Olympic Games in Paris (July 26-August 11, 2024) are fast approaching, and the objectives set by Emmanuel Macron to finish in the top five nations for these home Olympics seem to make many players in French sport nervous.
Several federations have recently gone through deep crises (football, rugby, skating, gym, etc.), just like the French Olympic Committee (CNOSF) which, after more than a year and a half of psychodrama, elected the president of the ‘UCI (International Cycling Union) and IOC member David Lappartient to try to end it. The movement of mood of certain DTN, these transmission belts of the sports policy in their federation, adds another dimension to this tense atmosphere.
Installed at the head of high performance within the ANS, a body which oversees high-level sport in particular, Claude Onesta is responsible for setting the success of French sport to music for these Olympics. An eminently complex task for this successful French hand coach, with a strong character, which can sometimes create tensions.
During a meeting last Thursday of the steering committee (Copil) Gagner in France, the differences of opinion between the association of DTNs and Onesta were brought to light, according to several sources. Presence or not of certain federations within the Olympic village, financial aid that some hope for but do not see coming: the two camps seemed very far apart.
More generally, some criticize Claude Onesta for sometimes abrupt methods, arbitrary choices, relating both to the very functioning of the ANS but also to that of his boss. “Decisions are made collectively, I am not alone. It’s a fantasy to believe that I decide everything. I can understand that when certain decisions do not go their way, it creates dissatisfaction. But it’s our role, “assumes the one who had guided French handball players to two Olympic gold medals (2008, 2012).
“It’s true that Claude is sometimes not easy, but you have to put things into perspective. There is a hard core of DTN a little reassembled, but not all. The Olympics are approaching and nervousness is spreading on all floors, ”explains an agency executive. Certain subjects are indeed angry, and mainly the financial aspect since it is via the ANS, which has a budget of nearly 460 million euros this year, that the funds pass to the federations.
“We have differences of opinion with him on how the money is distributed. Some did not have their 2023 budget until the beginning of July, it’s nonsense, “laments another DTN on condition of anonymity. “There are also these arbitrary decisions that fall without explanation”, regrets another, in particular on the allocation of funds linked to the performance contract. “Some DTNs have learned by email of a drop in their budget and that’s it,” explains this DTN.
