France Names 11 to Roster for 2019 World Championships in Gwangju

2019 French Elite National Championships – 50M

At the conclusion of Sunday night’s finals session at 2019 French Elite Nationals in Rennes, the FFN (Fédération Française de Natation) announced the names of the 11 athletes who will form Team France at 2019 World Championships in Gwangju, South Korea. Three of the swimmers, Charlotte Bonnet, Fantine Lesaffre, and Mehdy Metella, had prequalified for selection to the team by medaling in individual events at 2018 European Championships in Glasgow last summer. The other eight were added to the roster this week.

Women

Men

The French women did not qualify any relays, per the FFN’s qualifying rules. The men qualified only the 400 free relay. Athletes qualified to swim at Worlds are allowed one complementary event, according to the FFN’s rules, as long as they achieved a FINA A cut in prelims. Presumably, Bonnet will be able to add the 50 free, Gastaldello will be able to add either the 50 back or the 50 fly, and Wattel should be able to add the 50 fly. It is unclear if Lesaffre will be allowed to swim the 200 IM; she achieved the A cut in finals, not in prelims as stated in the rules.

On the men’s side, Mignon will be able to add the 50 free and Metella, the 50 fly. Aubry and Joly should be able to add the 800 free (as an aside, Aubry broke the French National Record in the event in finals).

 

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ooo
4 years ago

They could field a 400 relay with Lesaffre as 4th swimmer and probably get in the top 12.

Aquajosh
Reply to  ooo
4 years ago

They could definitely field a medley relay with her at the very least.

MR FLY
4 years ago

What happened to Amaury Leveaux?

Snarky
4 years ago

Wow. They almost have half a football team.

Ragnar
4 years ago

WACK* in Hannibal Buress

straightblackline
4 years ago

I know French swimming is not a powerhouse but more swimmers deserved to be on this team. By the way, Great Britain has yet to announce its team. I know it was not straightforward with automatic qualifying times, consideration times(the so called Table 2), and eight discretionary selections but you would have thought they would have been penciling in names progressively and then made a final decision at the end of the last competition day. Is this due to political decision-making?

WV Swammer
Reply to  straightblackline
4 years ago

not a powerhouse?! Your surely joking France is one the best in the world, I’d even say 3rd behind US and Australia perennially.

Admin
Reply to  WV Swammer
4 years ago

That might have been true once upon a time, at their peak c. 2012 and 2013, but today it is certainly no longer true.

France ranks 13th all-time in Olympic swimming medals. If we limit this to the ‘modern era,’ however you want to define that, they probably jump USSR, East Germany, Sweden, and Canada to crack the top 10, looking across an era, but I would disagree with 3rd.

straightblackline
Reply to  WV Swammer
4 years ago

France was never a powerhouse. They had a very good 2012 Olympics but that was largely due to two swimmers – Yannick Agnel and Camille Muffat who is sadly is no longer with us. Their men’s relay teams did well but they certainly would not have won gold without Agnel in the 4X100FS and in the 4X200 they wouldn’t have won a medal at all. To be considered a powerhouse a nation needs depth and France never really had it.

Brownish
Reply to  straightblackline
4 years ago

Have to mention Balmy, Bernard, Bonnet, Bousquet, Castel, Etienne, Farrel, Gandin, Gilot, Lazare, Lefert, Leveaux, Mallet, Manadou, Stravius, too all won medal in London and/or in Debrecen.

nuotofan
Reply to  Brownish
4 years ago

Farrel, Gandin, Lazare were difficult to remind also for me, swimming fan..
Sorry but you can’t consider Euro2012 at Debrecen as an indicative EuroChamps: too many absent, only Hungary, Italy and (perhaps) Germany with a complete roster.

Brownish
Reply to  nuotofan
4 years ago

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_European_Aquatics_Championships

True, all the Europeans in the year of Olympics is not a “whole”championship but statistically is the same as the others.
Debrecen is my home town and of course I was there with my whole team (alone) so I had the feeling of that and saw theese athletes.
Germany was interesting. Once was there (Europeans) at that time before the Olympics and nearly didn’t win anything, four years later they weren’t and the result was the same.

Coach John
4 years ago

how is this relay fiasco going to affect their relay entries for 2020 Tokyo? are they completely limited to that one relay now or are there other chances to get more relays in for Tokyo?

Rafael
Reply to  Coach John
4 years ago

Olympic relays are top 12 at world + 4 fastest times outside these 12

DMacNCheez
Reply to  Rafael
4 years ago

Yikes, if this is true, they should feel ashamed for not sending relays to at least try. No wonder Bobo Gigi has been missing. It’s a a sad time for French swimming.

John
Reply to  Rafael
4 years ago

So with that logic… they are purposely going for the 4 team wildcard…. this is a worse strategy than every Brazilian prelim relay order (I kid…)

torchbearer
Reply to  John
4 years ago

Indeed, 5 relays possibly gambling on time trials…

Samuel Huntington
4 years ago

Just one French relay at worlds, a sad sight!

torchbearer
Reply to  Samuel Huntington
4 years ago

This is crazy with Olympic qualification on the line!

Honest Observer
4 years ago

Wonder how many officials are accompanying the team. Someone ought to set near impossible goals for them to achieve before they get to go as well.

About Anne Lepesant

Anne Lepesant

Anne Lepesant is the mother of four daughters, all of whom swam in college. With an undergraduate degree from Princeton (where she was an all-Ivy tennis player) and an MBA from INSEAD, she worked for many years in the financial industry, both in France and the U.S. Anne is currently …

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