2024-11-14 16:00:00
Victim of a concussion with the French XV team during the tour in Canada last month, the Lou player, who will celebrate her 29th birthday on December 3, had to be patient to show off her status best French rugby player on the pitches of the French Championship. Séraphine Okemba will play her first match of the season with Lou, this Saturday at Matmut Stadium in Gerland against Rennes (7 p.m.). To try to forget a little the disappointment of the Olympics which she had made a life goal… but without hiding that the worst was predicted for her after a collarbone injury a year ago. Confidences all in emotions and good humor.
You will finally play your first match this season with Lou, we imagine you can’t wait…
Yes, I am happy, after the difficult Olympic period, to find Lou and this environment in which I feel very good. That’s a lot of things to relearn because I wasn’t there often last year: in terms of the game project, I have work to do. But I love work! And then, it’s a privilege to evolve at Matmut. Rennes is the first club where I played in the first division. I’m in the last club of my career at Lou and I’m playing against my first club, it’s a great story (Editor’s note: between the two, she played for Saracens in England – where she went as an au pair – with in particular Emilie Bydwell, coach of the USA who won bronze at the Olympics, then at Stade Toulousain). I’m keen to play and indeed, I’m really looking forward to it.
What are Lou’s ambitions this season?
Honestly, we are in a luxury setting, everything is put in place so that we can perform and qualify for the final phases. Our team has a lot of character and heart and I think we need to show more of this state of mind to seek more victories. We suffered two defeats against Bobigny and Lille but overall, in the matches, we created a lot of opportunities. Once we can apply the finish, we can go far. Personally, I would like to bring my high-level experience, I have nevertheless experienced some somewhat crazy adventures (laughs).
Are you referring to the Olympic Games?
Underperforming in front of 65,000 people in the quarter-finals of the Olympics was hard to digest (finalist in Tokyo in 2021, the French team was eliminated by Canada). Our goal was the gold medal. There was no other, no other… (she procrastinates) choice, at least concerning me. It’s life, it’s sport, you have to be able to change. I had the chance to apply for the French rugby union team and I went on tour to Canada, switching to another objective with the World Cup next year in England in my sights.
How did it go for you?
I took my first steps in the French XV, in a position, 3e wing line, which I didn’t know very well. I played a lot of rugby sevens, little XV. After the Games, it felt good to start something new. I have everything to learn because the two disciplines have absolutely nothing to do with each other, the XV is much more strategic, and that did me good. For me, it’s a new life, a new page to write and I needed it: it’s been 7 years since I was 7, 7 years since I was traveling around the world and spending my life in Marcoussis since I am under contract with the FFR. So I played very few matches with Lou last season, I didn’t take part in any training. Sitting down and focusing on something new does me a lot of good.
We sense in your voice that the disappointment of the Olympics is very marked. Can we even talk about trauma?
The word trauma can have its place, without it being something very serious. I didn’t lose anyone but we have to put things in context: I went through a complicated season, I had two operations in a row, on my finger then on my collarbone, and I didn’t know if I was was going to play in the Olympics. I worked a lot mentally and physically to get to the best of myself. When you push your limits every day and ultimately don’t get the result you hoped for, it’s very hard. I made the choice during this season to deprive myself of many things to focus on this objective. When you only live, eat, sleep, dream of one thing and you don’t get it to the end, it’s very, very hard. Especially in front of our family who were also subjected to our choices: I missed a lot of family events. And our loved ones were as sad as us. The whole of France was sad (laughs). We have to put things into perspective because obviously there are more serious things in life, but it’s something that I will never forget.
Did you tell yourself that you did all this for nothing?
At the beginning of course! I didn’t believe it, I was clearly in denial. I realized we lost when we played the match for 5th place. And I collapsed at the end… I had done a lot of projects around this competition: I released a musical album for the Games, I am working on a cartoon about the Olympics (on rugby 7 targeted for 6-10 year olds and anchored on personal development). It was all for the gold medal and nothing else.
Afterwards, if it hadn’t been for this event, I wouldn’t have carried out all these projects: it really motivated and boosted me. And then, I have never pushed myself so much. I come out with a really disgusting scar (she shows a big scar at the top of her torso, she will have surgery to remove it in a few years, at the end of her career) and even my finger is not very beautiful. This is the consequence of my two operations, in particular an internal dislocation of the clavicle, in November 2023. A case so rare – in most cases, the dislocation is outwards – that I was even said that I might not play again! But I didn’t follow the classic rehabilitation process, I knew I wasn’t going to follow it, I’m a little stubborn (laughs). For me, it was not an option to stop rugby. I was predicted to have between 3 and 6 months off, but I wanted to do the Olympics: so I only stopped for 3 months, and I came back very well. I worked a lot, I conditioned myself mentally well.
Despite this, you were elected in September at the Nuit du rugby as the best French player of the season (for the 2e times after 2021), it may seem crazy compared to what you have just said?
Yes, it’s crazy. Even if I’m super happy, I admit that I’m not necessarily comfortable with these prices because it’s a team sport. If I was able to perform well at a given moment, it is thanks to the collective. The particularity of this award is that women’s rugby was included in a catch-all in which the 7 and the XV were placed. I think we could have separated the two disciplines because they are completely different. And obviously, I would have preferred the gold medal than this title.
Tell us about your album “La Saison” released a week after the Olympics and available on all platforms.
Music is my first passion, it is also my first means of expression. I started playing when I was very little, I also quickly began to write down what I was experiencing. It was a way for me to express myself. This album tells what I experience. Music accompanies us all in our lives, when we are sad, when we are happy. There is a real emotional side and that is what I wanted to tell about my journey, about the pre-Olympics, about the death of a loved one, about the lifestyle that I chose. As with the Olympics, which are multidisciplinary, there are three different styles of music in the album: afro, a little pop and piano-vocals. I have been asked to give concerts but I don’t know when yet because the priority remains rugby. But why not! The most important thing is fun because I do these projects to have fun. When I have an idea, I like to do something with it rather than keeping it to myself. I don’t like living with regrets.
How did these two passions come to you, music and rugby?
We are very sports and music in the family, more basketball. My parents practiced this sport, my 5 brothers too (only the last one continues), just like my cousin Myriam Djékoundadé who participated in the Paris Olympics in 3×3 with the French team, and that was extraordinary. But I didn’t want to be like everyone else, especially not like my brothers, I like to stand out from the crowd (laughs). So I played music and discovered rugby in college with my sports teacher in Dreux (where she is from), Éric Pestre, who advised me to get started: that’s how it is that I started at 16. The piano, and music in general, allows me to express a form of gentleness and rugby the side of anger, rage or aggression. It’s a bit my style of play, actually. I really liked the combat side of rugby, that’s what appealed to me.
Comments collected by Sylvain Lartaud
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How did your experiences in competitive sports influence the themes and stories in “La Saison”?
Connection between my journey in sports and my musical expression. “La Saison” captures moments of struggle, joy, and the roller coaster of emotions that come with competing at a high level. Each song reflects a chapter of my life, especially the challenges I’ve faced, including the injury and the disappointment at the Olympics.
Creating this album post-Olympics was therapeutic for me. It allowed me to channel my feelings into something creative and meaningful. Music helps me process everything that has happened, and I hope it resonates with listeners, whether they are athletes or simply navigating their own challenges.
The album has received positive feedback, and I’m excited for people to hear it. I believe art and sports share a fundamental essence: both require passion, dedication, and the ability to overcome obstacles. I want my listeners to feel inspired and empowered, just as I do when I step onto the field.
