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Par Guillaume Kagni | Journaliste sportif
This Wednesday sees the start of the Women’s Euro, and coach Jean-Aimé Toupane is faced with a very different squad to the one that won silver at the Paris Games. Marine Johannès has just explained the reasons for her absence, and it’s all about silver.
Just under a year after the legendary Olympic Games, the French women’s team will have to make do with an overhauled squad for the Euro, which kicks off this Wednesday. Jean-Aimé Toupane’s girls will be aiming to do at least as well as they did in Paris, but with a squad missing its biggest stars, due to an unending WNBA season.
Gabby Williams, France’s best player and leader of the squad, has decided to stay in Seattle, where she could well become an All-Star for the first time in her career. She is keeping young prodigy Dominique Malonga with her, despite her lack of playing time with the Storm. Another youngster to opt for the W is Carla Leite, already an important player in Golden State.
Marine Johannès talks about her absence from the French squad
Finally, there’s the one who will be missed as much in sporting terms as in the media, as she is adored by Les Bleues fans: Marine Johannès. Having set out to win a title with the Liberty, the fullback has decided to stay with her partners and put the French team on pause. Interviewed by L’Equipe, she was very honest about the reasons for her choice:
I think there are a lot of people who haven’t understood that you can’t be away for more than 21 days in the WNBA, otherwise the season doesn’t count. I’ve only been able to come four times in seven years, with a lot of back and forth in between… So I’m still under rookie contract today. So this season is really important for me. Even if I only play 5, 10 or 15 minutes a game, it allows me to finally validate this fourth and final year.
These days, you’re often on the move between two clubs, in Europe and the United States, in addition to the French team. It’s tough mentally and physically. I hope that something can be put in place to give us more freedom. Especially as the WNBA continues to grow, there are going to be more and more French players.
Seven years after signing for the WNBA, Marine Johannès is still playing under her rookie contract, and she’s aiming to pass that milestone this year. Even if she doesn’t play much, she intends to stay with the Liberty until the end to validate her fourth season and become a free agent in the autumn. At the age of 30, she could finally negotiate with other franchises and earn a salary commensurate with her talent, while having responsibilities on an ambitious team.
