Table tennis player Félix Lebrun, only 17 years old, won Olympic bronze in men’s singles, beating Brazilian Hugo Calderano (6th) 4-0 on Sunday August 4 at the Arena Paris Sud, giving France a 42nd medal in these Games.
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The French table tennis phenomenon, ranked fifth in the world, won 11-6, 12-10, 11-7, 11-6. He is the second French table tennis player in history to stand on the podium at the Olympic Games after an individual event, 32 years after Jean-Philippe Gatien, who won silver at Barcelona 1992.
For the Lebruns, table tennis is a family affair: there is the father, Stéphane, ex-French number 7, the uncle, Christophe Legoût, former world number 14, the older brother Alexis (20 years old, world number 16) and Félix. It’s been a dream since I was little. I had the perfect match. It’s crazy. I’ve had a lot of difficult matches. Being able to celebrate with my whole family and the French team is huge. “, enthused Félix Lebrun on France TV. It’s huge what he’s achieved. I’m really proud that he’s my little brother. “, Alexis Lebrun told Le Parisien as he left the stands to join Félix in the locker room.
Despite his obvious predisposition to excel with a racket in hand, and even if nothing has been left to chance in this journey to the top, nothing like this was possible three years ago.
A meteoric rise
Coming out of the Covid pandemic, Félix and Alexis were still complete strangers, even followers. Their potential was then only sensed by those close to them, but without necessarily imagining the heights soon to be reached.
The youngest born in Montpellier (south) on September 12, 2006, of a family of four which also includes two older sisters (Roxane and Margaux), Félix was only three years old when his toddler bottom was placed on the ping-pong table in the garage of the house.
Following in the footsteps of his brother Alexis, Félix Lebrun is making his mark in the youth categories. The Insep in Paris is there for them, but to perfect the progress of his teenagers, father Stéphane favours the family environment while setting up a professional structure entirely devoted to their success (coach, physiotherapist, mental trainer, manager).
In December 2021, Félix Lebrun won gold in doubles at the U15 World Championship, four months after three European championship titles (singles, doubles, mixed). He was still 14 when he won the scalp of the world’s 25th player in his first senior tournament.
When he made his professional debut at the end of 2021, he was ranked 1068th, a year later, hop, 78th, then, on March 19, 2024, he became the third youngest player in history to climb to 5th. For his first major title, he is crowned at the 2023 European Games.
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