Zidane: Goes back in saddle for the sick children
Paris Match - January 11th 2007 issue
translated from French by missanemone
He attended tens of hours of horsemanship courses to offer to his little
protégés a unique act of dressage. Around him, in a few weeks on the stage of
TF1, a number his famous friends -- Clair Chazal, Florent Pagny, and ... Yannick
Noah.
It is a whole symbol: Noah and Zidane, the favorite heroes of the French, were
found to help the children affected by an incurable evil. The filming of the
television special was carried out on camera. The veil is partially lifted in
revealing the exploits of Zizou as a rider, but the special task of Yannick Noah
remains a secret until the airing of the special. It will be one of the great
surprises of this program which presents celebrities in a completely unexpected
role. Before conquering the French once again, the champions charmed these
children who suffer but never give up. Asked by Michel Platini, Zidane joined
ELA a little after having met little Jérémy at Stade de France in 1998. The
disease had a face that the champion never forgot.
He learned in a few weeks what others do in three years. Zizou knew how to
listen and obey the rules. "He has everything to succeed with a horse," says his
trainer, "the perspective, the eye, the style, these qualities that one knows of
him." Whatever the stake, Zidane remains the client. He discovered a new art of
living with Toreo and Fuego, which embodied the perfection of the Andalusian
horse, the mount of kings with an ideal balance and generosity. Going beyond the
stake, working in total secrecy close to Rodez or in Madrid, Zizou passed all
the courses to serve the cause to which he holds so much: ELA. He is member of
the Board of Trustees of the research foundation that ELA created to find a cure
to these sets of myeline diseases (leucodystrophies, multiple sclerosis,
diseases of the premature) that are said to affect more than 100,000 people in
France.
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One played tennis and the other football, the former stopping in the 90's just
when the latter was only beginning to break through. They do not live in the
same country ... The only place where one could find Yannick Noah and Zinedine
Zidane together, until now, was at the heart of the French, where they hold
alternatively the first and second places. But the two greatest sportsmen that
France had known have another thing in common: their engagement. Not in the same
associations though. To fix that and to link their smiles and their exceptional
popularity, Zizou asked the ex-tennis player to take part in the benefit of ELA,
the European Leucodystrophies Association which he has been sponsoring since
2000. Without hesitating, Noah agreed to help raise funds which will finance
research and improve the life of the children affected by these diseases. Also,
Yannick found the name of the special, "The stars exceed themselves for ELA"
challenging. This special, shot around mid-December and which will be aired on
TF1 in February, is ambitioned to be a little anti-telethon.
"There won't be any reports on families of sick children," says Guy Alba, the
president of ELA. "I hope that the public will understand the stake despite
everything and we invite them to call 32 80 - which will be working only on the
night of the show's airing - to donate. It is the fifth time that ELA organizes
a night on primetime television. Until now it was simple entertainment. But this
time, the concept is different. The stars are ready to present prepared numbers
in disciplines which they are not familiar with, that took immense effort, long
working hours, and courage."
No question, therefore, for Noah to give a tennis representation, to sing or to
deploy his talents as a psychological coach as he should do it soon in front of
the players of PSG to bring them peace. There is absolute secrecy on what he is
to do. Anne Marcassus, one of the show's producers, agreed to reveal that one
will see him "in military behaviour," which in itself is astonishing for the
passionate pacifist. One also knows that he met with a "very famous coach,
almost as famous as he is, who trained him every day for one month". If the
number of Florent Pagny, one of the first sponsors of theassociation, also
remains a secret, those of the other stars are subjected to less secrecy: Claire
Chazal will do a mind-boggling cabaret according to those who saw her, Jenifer
fully prepared for her task to play Uma Thurman in "Kill Bill," and Claire Keim
carried out a spectacular acrobatic number ...
"There are a million riders in France but hardly 10% of them are able to do
what he had learned."
In general opinion, however, nobody more was invested or "endangered" than
Zidane. Rather than offering a lengthy and beautiful spectacle of his Marseilles
roulettes which are missed so much in football, and which wouldn't have required
too much effort from him, he launched at a challenge to learn how to ride a
horse. Because, even if the noble horse is "his favorite animal," according to
his friend Guy Alba, he had never had the occasion to ride on. When the chance
is presented, he could not have seized it between his 14 years of playing until
his retirement; too dangerous and risky for the invaluable body of a genious
footballer. At 34 years, he therefore had to learn everything from the beginning.
Between his return from Bangladesh in November and his departure for Algeria on
December 11th, he was compelled to attend twenty, three-hour horseback-riding
lessons to take up his challenge. For that, he worked with the famous equestrian
stuntman Mario Luraschi, and one of his assistants, Patrice Cossoneau, remaining
for several weeks in Madrid for the coaching.
"Not only is Zidane a sportsman, which is an obvious asset, but more so, he was
not afraid, which allowed us to advance more quickly," explains Mario Luraschi.
"But his greatest asset is that he is naturally very gifted. He has a sense of
the horse. There are a million riders in France but hardly 10% of them are able
to do what he had learned."
With Patrice Cossoneau, Zizou studied the basics, in a riding stables close to
his home in Madrid. He became familiar with the horses Toreo and Fuego -- by
caress, in the bridle, and on the saddle -- before passing the painful phase
known as the "tapecul" where his balance on the saddle is built. He had been
warned: horsemanship does not require the same muscles as with football and the
following days were hard. "But as a good sportsman," tells Luraschi "he knows
that the best means of fighting against the aches is to recover the following
day." Then he persevered and progressed at a miraculous speed. With Mario
Luraschi, in his stable of Senlis and in the national stud farms in Rodez (where
Zidane had come to visit his in-laws), the ex-captain of Les Bleus worked on the
"haute école," the most difficult figures, like the passage, the Spanish step,
and the courbette. At one time, one of the horses fell on him.
"He knew to keep his cool and not panic while waiting until the horse is raised.
To remain zen when one has 450 kilos on top of the leg, it is impressive,"
Luraschi said with wonder. "He really was a perfect pupil, comparable to
Philippe Noiret, Jean Rochefort, or Christian Clavier!"
He even learned some tricks/steps that he wouldn't have the time to include in
the ELA special ... just for fun. Moreover, he could not carry out on the stage
all that was planned. The horses were startled because of the spotlights and on
the floor of the stage, which was very different from their usual grounds. But
even so, Zidane could hold his hand up high for the gamble which he had
launched. For the greatest happiness of the families in ELA, "if proud," said
Guy Alba, "to have such a man for sponsor." And for the greatest joy to come to
the viewers of TF1.
Impressed by Zizou's exploits, Yannick Noah did not hesitate to kid him:
"Whereas things always seemed easy for you, there you had to work!" Like the
other stars present, Zidane accepted to be filmed during his training for small
reports that which will be aired on the same evening, presented by Jean-Pierre
Foucault and Benjamin Castaldi. In the field of humour also, the two idols
placed the bar very high. They did not launch into commercials, passing the
pauses between two numbers with wisecracks and laughters.
"Humour is important. One is increasingly more generous when in a good mood."
Together, Yannick and Zizou, the two champions and responsible fathers of
family, became simple happy rascals to see and share a beautiful complicity. "It
is important that the participants show humour, ensures Guy Alba. One is
increasingly more generous in good mood."
For years, these two are admired and do not hide any. They did not have the time
to be get together before the retirement of Zidane but they were seen from time
to time, while dreaming of the day when they can become friends. Zizou sent
signs - discrete, obviously - of his affection for the player who made him dream
"at 12 years old." Last April, while he took part in the operation "Une balle
pour la paix" where personalities send a soccer ball to a person who, for them,
represents peace, he had indicated that Noah was the recipient of his: "He is a
great sportsman, somebody sincere," he said, "When you look at him, he is
lively. He knows what is life. His glance says many things, in particular,
'peace'."
Inevitably more effusive, Noah was crazy with joy in receiving the ball that
"gives us so many things. To receive something of him, it is very priceless."
Unconditional fan of Zizou, "a golden guy out of gold, who will always inspire
me." Noah, however, dreamt of the retirement of his idol: "This moment, finally
there will be time to get to know each other better and to go out drinking
together." They did better, by linking their forces to give hope to sick
children.