Athletes who became famous
Until 1997, when the military service was suspended, professional athletes, like all French citizens, had to comply with their military obligations and spend several months in the armed forces in order to acquire military training and contribute to the defence of their country. To avoid taking too long out of their sporting careers, they were posted to the Joinville Battalion, which was set up in 1956 to train high-profile conscripts.
Until 2002, the battalion received between 450 and 550 young athletes from 54 sports federations each year.
Below, you will find a non-exhaustive list of some of the great names to have served in the Joinville Battalion between 1956 and 2002 :
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Private first class Fabien GALTIE, rugby player, current coach of the French rugby team;
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Private first class Zinédine ZIDANE, 1998 football world cup winner, coach;
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Private first class Youri DJORKAEFF, 1998 football world cup winner
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Private first class Bixente LIZARAZU, 1998 football world cup winner;
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Private first class Emmanuel PETIT, 1998 football world cup winner;
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Private first class Fabien BARTHES, 1998 football world cup winner;
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Private first class Patrick VIEIRA, 1998 football world cup winner;
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Private first class Roger LEMERRE, football player, deputy coach of the French football team during the 1998 World Cup;
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Private first class Stéphane DIAGANA, world champion in the 400m hurdles in 1997;
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Private first class Laurent JALABERT, cyclist, world leader from 1995 to 1997;
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Private first class Jackson RICHARDSON, bronze medallist with the French handball team at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona;
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Private first class Guy FORGET, former number 1 French tennis player;
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Private first class Cédric PIOLINE, tennis player;
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Private first class Sébastien GROSJEAN, tennis player;
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Private first class Arnaud BOETSCH, tennis player;
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Private first class Maxime BOSSIS, international football player;
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Private first class Alain PROST, best French Formula 1 driver;
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Private first class Jean ALESI, French Formula 1 driver;
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Private first class Eric CANTONA, international football player;
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Private first class David GINOLA, international football player;
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Private first class Titouan LAMAZOU, winner of the first Vendée Globe;
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Private first class Bruno MARIE-ROSE, world indoor 200m record holder in 1987;
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Private first class Pierre QUINON, pole vault champion at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics;
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Private first class Yannick NOAH, winner of Rolland Garros in 1983;
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Private first class Thierry REY, Olympic judo champion at the Moscow Olympic Games in 1980;
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Private first class Jean-Luc ROUGE, first French world judo champion in 19750;
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The first class Guy DRUT, silver medallist in the 110m hurdles at the 1972 Munich Olympics;
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Corporal Jacques ANQUETIL, several times winner of the Tour de France.