Gregory Lemarchal. The Star Academy pays tribute to Grégory Lemarchal during his bonus, Saturday November 12, on TF1.
[Mis à jour le 12 novembre 2022 à 20h40] The Star Academy pays tribute to one of its most famous faces: Grégory Lemarchal. This Saturday, November 12, the 2022 promotion of the TF1 telecrochet, which had discovered him, honors the singer, who died in 2007. His parents will be present, alongside other artists such as Amel Bent, Patrick Fiori, Kendji Girac, Zazie or Mr. Pokora.
Laurence and Pierre Lemarchal also went to the castle of Dammarie-les-Lys, where they were able to exchange a moment with the students of Star Academy 2022. They will also be able to promote the Grégory Lemarchal association, which works against cystic fibrosis , responsible for the death of the young artist. An association to which also belongs Karine Ferrithe former companion of Grégory Lemarchal.
They were a couple for two years, between 2005 and 2007. About their first meeting, Karine Ferri told Paris Match in 2007: “There were no candles, we spent the evening sleeping and when I left, I said to myself: ‘He’s going to think I’m crazy.’ completely unraveled’.” And to go further, on their fusional love: “I have known 3 men in my life and Greg is the only one of whom I have been able to say ‘If he sleeps tonight next to a top model in the same bed, he won’t touch it!'”
After the death of Grégory Lemarchal, Karine Ferri had the initials of their first names, “GK” tattooed on her left wrist. She has also never stopped fighting alongside Pierre and Laurence Lemarchal to advance research on cystic fibrosis. Discreet on the subject, Karine Ferri recently paid tribute to Grégory Lemarchal on her Instagram account: “For your courage, for your fight which has become ours, for all those who suffer from the same illness as you. For your immense talent and the beauty of your soul. To show that you must always believe in your dreams and because your strength is in us forever”, wrote the host in the caption of the poster of the biopic dedicated to the singer, in September 2020 .
What is cystic fibrosis?
In April 2007, the whole of France mourned the disappearance of Grégory Lemarchal, who had become the face of the fight against cystic fibrosis. This serious genetic disease, which mainly affects the respiratory and digestive tracts, is transmitted to a child jointly by the father and the mother. The gene responsible for this pathology was discovered in 1989. Since then, thanks to advances in medicine, treatment and care, cystic fibrosis has fallen sharply: “The most evocative figure is undoubtedly the life expectancy . From 7 years for children born in 1965, it is close to 50 years for those born today”, can we read on the site dedicated to the disease, Overcome cystic fibrosis.
According to data from this organization, in 2017, there were 7,114 patients diagnosed with cystic fibrosis in France. Several symptoms characterize this disease, in particular the obstruction of the lungs. “When the lungs are healthy, the mucus that lines the walls of the airways is fluid and protects the bronchi. In a person with cystic fibrosis, the mucus is thick and viscous that adheres to the walls of the bronchi, clogging them, thus hindering the passage of the air”, is it detailed on the same site.
Thanks to research, several treatments have been established for cystic fibrosis in recent years. A lung transplant can also be considered, but, today, no treatment yet completely cures cystic fibrosis.
The death of Gregory Lemarchal
The death of Grégory Lemarchal will have put a sad spotlight on cystic fibrosis. The disease has 308 deaths between 2007 and 2011, according to the latest data from Public Health France communicated in 2015. The singer had never hidden from the general public the disease against which he had been fighting since the first months of his life. It was in 1985 that doctors diagnosed him with cystic fibrosis. In early 2007, his condition deteriorated and Grégory Lemarchal was hospitalized on April 2 at the Foch hospital in Suresnes. He must receive in the coming days a lung transplant. “Grégory had texted me the same morning: ‘Everything is fine, I’m going to have a transplant tonight'”, producer Gérard Louvin told Closer.
On the evening of April 29, the singer is placed in an artificial coma to relieve him while waiting for this famous transplant, which will never happen. Grégory Lemarchal died on April 30 at 1 p.m. He was only 23 years old. His funeral took place in Chambéry on May 3, 2007 and his body rests in the cemetery of Sonnaz, in Savoie, where he was from.
Grégory Lemarchal and the Star Academy
It was on September 3, 2004 that France discovered the young Grégory Lemarchal, candidate for the famous Star Academy show. From the first prime, viewers fall under the spell of the one who will later be called “the voice of an angel”. Everyone will keep in mind his sublime interpretation SOS from an earthling in distress, Daniel Balavoine’s hit. On December 22, 2004, facing Lucie Bernardoni, he won hands down the fourth season of TF1’s tele-hook, with 80% of the public’s votes (a record). This season of Star Academy will explode the popularity of Grégory Lemarchal in France.
On January 5, 2007, the young artist returned to the Star Academy set to deliver another unforgettable interpretation, that of The Show Must Go Onin duet with Patrick Bruel on the occasion of TF1’s 100th TV show. This will be his last television appearance.
Pierre and Laurence Lemarchal, Grégory’s parents
Since the disappearance of their son, they have never stopped talking about cystic fibrosis to encourage research against the disease. Also, Pierre and Laurence Lemarchal closely followed the filming of the biopic on their son, Grégory, broadcast on TF1 on Monday September 7. In the columns of Le Parisien, they explain their involvement: “The disease must have been present but not heavy, without falling into pathos. With Grégory, we cried and laughed a lot too, because he was a prankster. What do we do when we discover that his child has a very short life expectancy? We let go, we suffer or, on the contrary, we go? The TV movie had to bring out a universal message on the force of life, “explains Laurence Lemarchal to the newspaper.
Since 2007, with the progress of research, Grégory Lemarchal “would undoubtedly have been transplanted”, explains his father, Pierre. “Thanks to the money put into research on lung transplantation, few patients do not have a transplant. But we must also make the French aware of organ donation, because there is 34% refusal. so that an educational approach is carried out with National Education. Young people can be the messengers. We need the support of the government.” After the creation of the Grégory Lemarchal association, Laurence and Pierre created the first reception center for patients with cystic fibrosis, which opened in Rueil-Malmaison in 2018.