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| BALZER Sara |
| NOC |
France
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| Gender | Women |
| Born |
03 Apr 1995
in Strasbourg, FRA
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| Height | 1.75 m |
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Further Personal Information |
| Residence |
Paris, FRA |
Sport Specific Information |
| Club / Team |
Strasbourg Universite Club: France |
Further Personal Information |
| Higher education |
Psychology - National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance [INSEP]: Paris, FRA |
Sport Specific Information |
| Name of coach |
Matthieu Gourdain [national]; Damien Touya [national] |
| Handedness |
Left |
| When and where did you begin this sport? |
She took up the sport at age eight and began competing in 2010. |
Further Personal Information |
| Occupation |
Athlete |
| Languages |
English, French, Spanish |
General Interest |
| Injuries |
She sustained an injury to the anterior cruciate ligament [ACL] in her left knee at the 2017 World Championships in Leipzig, Germany. She returned to competition in May 2018. (lequipe.fr, 11 May 2018) |
| Ambitions |
To win gold in both individual and team sabre at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. (pokaa.fr, 09 Sep 2021) |
| Other information |
ALTERNATE
At the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo she was the alternate member of the French women's sabre team. She did not see any action in the event until the final, where she replaced her teammate Charlotte Lembach. The French team went on to win silver. "It's not an easy role, especially because if the alternate does not compete she does not receive a medal. It's a situation that I managed a lot with the help of mental coaches. The day of the competition I was focused on my job and on my role within the team. At the time I was told, 'You're in, Charlotte's out', it was a strong and magical feeling. But I stayed focused. I was going to get a medal but what I wanted was the gold one. I am happy I was able to manage all that because I was afraid all the emotions could take over." (pokaa.fr, 09 Sep 2021)
INJURY BREAK
She was sidelined by an injury to the anterior cruciate ligament [ACL] in her left knee from July 2017 to May 2018. "The psychological problem [caused by her injury] was even harder than the physical one. It took me more than two years to recover, and even then I had to go step-by-step. I think I am a different athlete after my injury. I became quite interested in re-athleticism, and found that things I was doing could increase the risk of injury. There are quite a few things that I wasn't doing or wasn't doing well, so I incorporated some strengthening exercises. For example on footwork, which I had never done but is very important in our sport. In the end, I mostly learned to listen to myself more. You can get a lot out of an injury like that." (byathlete.com, 22 Jun 2020; lequipe.fr, 11 May 2018)
FURTHER EDUCATION
She has also studied for a degree in digital communication. (france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr, 23 Dec 2021; pokaa.fr, 09 Sep 2021) |
Sport Specific Information |
| Training Regime |
She trains at the National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance [INSEP] in Paris, France. |
General Interest |
| Sporting philosophy / motto |
"The harder the road, the better the victory." (Facebook profile, 22 Apr 2021) |
Sport Specific Information |
| Why this sport? |
She followed her sister into the sport. |
General Interest |
| Awards and honours |
In 2021 she was named Knight of the National Order of Merit by the French government. (dna.fr, 10 Sep 2021; legifrance.gouv.fr, 08 Sep 2021) |
| Memorable sporting achievement |
Winning silver in team sabre at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (lefigaro.fr, 17 Jun 2022) |
| Olympic Games |
| 2020 |
2 |
Team Sabre |
Tokyo, Japan |
| World Championships |
| 2023 |
2 |
Team Sabre |
Milan, Italy |
| 2023 |
5 |
Individual Sabre |
Milan, Italy |
| 2022 |
2 |
Team Sabre |
Cairo, Egypt |
| 2017 |
3 |
Team Sabre |
Leipzig, Germany |
| European Championships |
| 2023 (Team) |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Kraków, Poland |
| 2023 (Individua |
2 |
Individual Sabre |
Plovdiv, Bulgaria |
| 2022 |
3 |
Individual Sabre |
Antalya, Turkey |
| 2017 |
3 |
Team Sabre |
Tbilisi, Georgia |
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