disabled after an accident at work, he found a new life thanks to CrossFit

After an accident at work cost him the use of his right arm, Thibaut Dupré, a former firefighter, found a new reason to fight in adaptive CrossFit. Haut-Savoyard is currently on the podium in this discipline and is preparing for the CrossFit Games, while dreaming of representing France in disabled rowing.

A former firefighter, he cherished his dream of becoming a mountain guide and rescue tracker. But an accident at work three years ago changed his fate, causing him to lose the use of his right arm. After months of hospitalization and rehabilitation, Thibaut Dupré found new drive in the demanding world of CrossFit.

“Since I was a child I have always had a competitive spirit, I have always needed to have goals to move forward, to move forward, and today, in my accident, I am categorized in relation to my handicap, which makes me may be able to perform and have the chance to try to be at a high level”he explains.

For almost two years, Thibaut Dupré, originally from Haute-Savoie, has invested body and soul in the demanding training of CrossFit, a discipline known for its rigor and intensity born in the United States in 2002 and which combines athletic strength, weightlifting, gymnastics and endurance sports.

Despite the additional challenges resulting from his disability, Haut-Savoyard climbed the podiums and is now preparing for a big challenge: the CrossFit Games, a world-renowned competition reserved for the elite of the discipline that gathers more than 200,000 participants worldwide each year.

“In the beginning there were big difficulties, not injuries, but a lot of contractures, a lot of things that cause you to create delays in certain movements that we have on the ‘Devil presses’ where you are forced to shift because you do it. Don’t use the other your arm, on the jump, I don’t use my second hand, so I make a gap. remember the athlete.

I had a few psychiatrist sessions after the accident, but in the end they were inconclusive. Today it is my escape, it is my reconstruction to be able to do sport and to have a goal at the professional level.

For Thibaut, every training session is a challenge to take on, an opportunity to progress and get a little closer to his final goal. His total investment in CrossFit has enabled him to develop unerring mental strength, essential to face the most demanding competitions.

High value-added work that produced results in a short time. The competition results are there to prove it. He currently holds first place in France and Europe and is ranked second in the world in adaptive CrossFit – a practice adapted to people with disabilities – which he considers to be a “therapy”.

“It’s my therapy session. I had some psychiatrist sessions after the accident, but in the end they weren’t decisive. Today it’s my escape, it’s my reconstruction to be able to play sports and to have a goal at a professional level. At For the first one was mainly a sporting goal, it’s definitely part of my reconstruction. expresses the athlete.

Thibaut’s remarkable achievements attracted the attention of observers, paving the way for new opportunities. His time at the National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance (Insep) and the promising tests he conducted there may well mark the start of a new adventure with the French Para team.

“If tomorrow I can wear the colors of France, it is a childhood dream that I was never able to achieve as an able-bodied person, but whose doors could be opened thanks to my disability. And then for me to perform during the selections to participate in the French team, and even more afterwards in competitions for the future”he means.