One month before the World Cup kicks off, the French women’s rugby team refines its preparation at altitude, in Tignes. In this mountain setting that she knows well, Emelline Gros, Savoyard, shares her ambition: to win the very first world title in the history of French women’s rugby.
How is the group’s state of mind one month before the start of the World Cup?
It is super positive. We want to erase all the little details that could fish on the 6 nations tournament. Now we are focusing on what we want to get on this World Cup. We work hard and the fact of being in Tignes, it allows us to be in a new setting and to work differently with hypoxia.
Do you feel like you are going up in intensity?
With each internship, the goal is to go up in intensity. Over these 10 days that will pass, we will make many more contacts, many more races, many more acceleration. Everything will be multiplied, so it will be super intense. This is what we are also looking for and that is what we are going to go get, in any case on this World Cup.
What’s the fact to be on a stadium at 2175 meters above sea level, it’s the highest in Europe …
It’s hard for cardio and pulmonary level, it takes much more. We have the red blood cells that work more. So it’s true that acclimatization is a bit hard, but we get well! I think that having a spot like that helps too. We only have it once in his life, especially in terms of rugby, in general we come here for skiing or bicycle … It’s really a breath of oxygen, it’s nice and it’s a treat, really. We really have a lot of luck to live what we live there. So it’s just that kiff. We always appreciate these somewhat relocated courses to be able to see something else and soak up a new view, a new landscape. Getting out of Marcoussis is appreciable. And we know that it will give us results.
Will there be a small activity outside of rugby that is planned?
We don’t really know. Normally, yes, this Wednesday. The staff calls it the surprise day. So we’ll see!
Personally, are you almost training at home?
It’s nice! I am Savoyard indeed but from the valley next to it, Saint-Julien-Mont-Denis. However, I only came once to Tignes for a Beach Rugby, but it is true that it is always a pleasure to come to the mountains because I love the mountain. It’s a little extra and it feels good for morale.
Do you feel that excitement is going up around this World Cup?
The fact of doing a training open to the public is tenfold the excitement. Everyone can come, everyone looks at us and we feel a certain craze around us. As soon as we walk around the streets, we are congratulated, we are encouraged. We start to feel the fervor at the level of the public. It’s super touching and it galvanizes us to get something.
In a group match, you will face Italy, Brazil and South Africa. Is it a hen without an apparent trap?
On the draw, we can say that it is without a trap, but afterwards, you always have to be wary. We know that the Italians are very rough. Brazil is not necessarily a nation that plays XV, but they can also have beautiful individuals. And we know that South Africa is girls who are quite robust, quite rough on contacts. During the tournament, we shared certain training with South Africa, it was complicated, so we too draw our pin on the game. This group phase must be almost surgical to be able to offer a quarter -finals at our reach.
What is the ambition on this World Cup?
Today, clearly is to be the first nation. We are going to take a match after match, but we know that everything we build is to get this first place. Our dream is then to necessarily challenge the English, probably the best today but beware of Canada and New Zealand.
