Economy | Aix-Marseille University: centers of excellence for students and top athletes

Special support is offered to high-level athletes in tennis, judo and basketball

by Provence

This partner content is brought to you by hub-eco, a community of companies and institutions that contribute to the creation of content that highlights their activities and expertise. “La Provence” regularly brings them together and is surrounded by guest experts to discuss current issues. The editorial staff did not participate in the creation of this content.

Reconcile higher education with a sports career. Aix-Marseille University (AMU) takes on this challenge and continues to support more than 300 high-level sports students (SHN) by offering them a special study plan.

“Establishing my status as a high-level athlete allowed me to combine classes and sports with schedule adjustments so that I would not miss training.Anaëlle Billet, member of the French Judo pole in Marseille, says the mathematics license. I did not miss the competition and the international judo course thanks to the opportunity to set up exceptional test sessions..”

With the SHN-AMU system (high-level athlete), the university course of these students is adapted to their intensive sports experience, such as tutoring or sports bonuses when the athlete represents the University of Aix-Marseille during academic competitions. “These students are exemplary personalities and contribute to the reputation of our university, either through their sports achievements or their ability to simultaneously perform “sport” and “exercise”., considers Isabelle Dimeglio, AMU’s vice-president for sports. JI am excited to work to strengthen and improve the support system so that everyone can comfortably continue their education and training without having to go through orientation or have to make choices..”

“Thanks to the university, I can continue my education”

Aix-Marseille University has training and sports performance centers for Tennis, Judo and Basketball; 9 sports sites between Aix and Marseille. “The aim is also to work on the sports aspect related to the federal sports movement, especially providing sports facilities for training centres.“, – says Romain Ferrer, responsible for the SHN-AMU division.

Every day, high-level athletes benefit from individual technical and physical support, for example for tennis, in the sports facilities, in the Saint-Jérôme area and on the Aix-en-Provence campus. “Setting up the study center was really helpful for me because it allowed me to have an infrastructure I could rely on close to the Faculty.“, emphasizes professional tennis player Clément Larriere, who is studying in the third year of the faculty of pharmacy.

The Regional Tennis League also offers weekly training within its infrastructure in Aix-en-Provence, providing a regional technical framework.

“When I entered graduate school, I was afraid to reduce my preparation, put down the racket and walk away from the courts, but thanks to ATU, I can continue training.“, explains Alexia Caron, a tennis player since the age of 4, currently in 3 licenses of Staps management. A big plus is the training provided by the Tennis training and sports performance center. Even when we are not training at our club, we can train with a coach, we are supervised in very good conditions, it is really nice.“, he thinks.

A swimming training and sports performance center could soon see the light of day, along with a French sailing center. Marseille will indeed host the sailing events of the Paris Olympics in 2024.