The "Du Sport en Plus" program is off to a flying start! After Scott Simons and Dany Trudel, it's now Ahmed Yves Douhou's turn to pass on his knowledge to young athletes. On Wednesday, May 17, some 120 young athletes, coaches and parents from the FC Anjou soccer club gathered. They took part in a conference on the theme of "perseverance".
Mr. Douhou has agreed to be one of the Sport Council's speakers, to pass on his experience to future generations.
"I've had a great career, but it hasn't always been easy. I want to do my bit, to share my experience with young people so that they understand how top-level sport works. That's very important to me. We need people like us to help and guide young people," confides the Frenchman.
It was at the Centre Roger Rousseau d'Anjou that FC Anjou arranged to meet this former professional track and field athlete. Ahmed Yves Douhou is a 3-time Olympian, 5-time World Champion, 3-time vice-champion of France 400m and much more.
Ahmed Yves Douhou is also the author of the book L'auto-observation, a self-management coach and now a philanthropy consultant. Above all, he is a passionate man who wants to share his story, his doubts, his successes and show that perseverance is essential in sport and in life.
"I think it was a very nice conference. People came up to me afterwards to thank me, and that was a pleasure. I could see in the young people's eyes that they were captivated by what I was telling them", explains the former sportsman.
The conference began with the simple phrase "We are all champions at heart" and the question "What is perseverance? Ahmed Yves Douhou recounted his career, his anecdotes, his positive and negative moments in life, to pass on a number of messages to the young athletes.
He explained, for example, where he got his motivation from, as a young African who dreamed of living in France. From his beginnings in karate to his first exploits in athletics, Ahmed Yves Douhou has been through a lot. A phone call with his father, followed by a simple encounter with a cleaning man that lasted just a few seconds, turned his life upside down. Perseverance and humility are his hallmarks.
Through his personal story and the illustration of his words, this former sportsman captured the attention of the audience. Players, parents and coaches were reminded that perseverance means "promising yourself you'll never give up". Mr. Douhou also stressed the importance of respect for all people, because you never know who you might meet: "Imagine that each person can change your life and enable you to live your dream".
Ahmed Yves Douhou then went on to explain the importance of learning strategies, planning, success, commitment, self-confidence, hard work, discipline and perseverance. He then ended his talk with a video to leave everyone with some food for thought.
