Frederic Villeroux

Started: He took up the sport in 1998. (france-paralympique.fr, 08 Nov 2019) Reason: He enjoyed the team aspect of the sport and being able to play with friends. "I began with individual sports such as swimming and athletics and it was only because I wanted to get along with my friends that I began with indoor football. But unfortunately, little by little, I was not able to be on the pitch anymore because I couldn't see the ball anymore. So that's when my coach advised me to join the visual impairment category to keep on enjoying it." (francebleu.fr, 21 Jun 2023; france-paralympique.fr, 08 Nov 2019) Ambition: To compete at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (francebleu.fr, 21 Jun 2023) Milestones: He was part of the squad that won France's first Paralympic medal [silver] in football 5-a-side at the 2012 Games in London. He is one of four players [along with Martin Baron, Gael Riviere, and Hakim Arezki] named in the French squad for the 2024 Games who also took part in London 2012. (SportsDeskOnline, 01 Jul 2024) Awards: In 2022 he received an acknowledgement from the municipality of Merignac, France. (merignac.com, 14 Dec 2022) In 2020 he received the Bernard Magrez Trophy at the Oscars of Sport Gala, which was organised by French newspaper Sudouest. (unadev.com, 21 Jan 2020) He was named Best Player of the European championships at the 2009 and 2019 editions of the tournament. (francebleu.fr, 21 Jun 2023) In 2013 he was named Knight of the National Order of Merit by the French government. (unadev.com, 22 Feb 2013) Additional Info: RETIREMENT PLANS He considered retiring from international competition following the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, but he was encouraged to continue with a view to competing at the 2024 Games in Paris. "Just like the rest of athletes, playing the Games at home [in Paris] is a dream. After Tokyo I wanted to stop but my family, my club and teammates told me not to leave. So I continued on for another Paralympic cycle. There's a need to find the time for training. There's the motivation. But finding the time to go on training camps, that's the hardest thing. Sometimes people refer to us as professional high-performance athletes but sadly we cannot reconcile everything at once." (francebleu.fr, 21 Jun 2023) HIATUS He took a break from the French national team between 2013 and 2018. "I stopped because I didn't find any more pleasure [in playing]. When I came back I realised a real evolution had occurred. Even if we are still amateurs, we train like professionals and that can be seen in the level of play." (sportmag.fr, 02 Jan 2020) LEADER He has served as captain of the French national Para football 5-a-side team. (unadev.com, 21 Jan 2020) COACHING He has been a member of the coaching staff of the French national U21 Para football 5-a-side team. He has also served as a coach at the Sport Athletique Merignacais club in France, aiming to develop sporting activities for people with a vision impairment. (unadev.com, 21 Jan 2020; france-paralympique.fr, 08 Nov 2019)