“All good things must come to an end”, says France legend Julien Candelon. The winger and scrum-half of the French sevens team has announced that the ninth stage of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, in Paris on 13-14 May, will be the last tournament of his career. A career which started ... in 1988.
On 8 July he will be 37 years old, he has spent almost 30 years with an oval ball in his hands.
“I have given a lot of my life to rugby and it has been quite demanding. I am almost 37 years old and I have sacrificed a lot over the past 15 years.
“I feel that in today’s rugby world I am lucky that I am able to choose how I end my career. I have always said that if the day comes that I start to make the spectators laugh, I’d have waited too long. So before that happens, I am bowing out gracefully."
With 42 tournaments on the world series, Candelon is the oldest player of this French sevens team, but there are others who have more tournaments under their belts and they are still in the game. Jonathan Laugel (46 tournaments), Paul Albaladejo (48 tournaments) – the current assistant coach of the French women sevens – Jean-Baptiste Mazoué (52 tournaments) and Manoel Dall’Igna (54 tournaments) are still all actively playing.
“Forty-two tournaments ... that’s quite a few kilometres” laughed Candelon. “That makes five years on the world series and possibly only three tournaments missed. That’s a lot and at the same time it has given me so much back that the kilometres around the world were well worth it.”
His introduction into sevens was thanks to Emile Ntamack.
On 27-28 May, 2006, Candelon participated in his first rugby sevens tournament at the Stade Charléty in Paris. Before investing himself into the game of sevens, he spent a considerable number of years in the 15s, notably with USAP, Stade Toulousain, Narbonne, SU Agen, Villeneuve-sur-Lot and Tournon. He had a six-year break before returning for a new challenge in sevens.
“My debut in sevens was a combination of circumstances,” explained Candelon. “While I was playing at Narbonne, my coach put me in contact with Thierry Janeczek (head coach of France sevens and still today in charge of talent identification).
“My comeback in 2012 was linked to a discussion with Emile Ntamack, with whom I had the chance to play with at Stade Toulousain. His opinion and wisdom has been important for me since the beginning of my professional career. Emile spoke with me about sevens and of the professionalisation of the game in France.
“I was looking for a new experience after seven years of Top 14 in France and I jumped on it for a few reasons: Rugby World Cup Sevens 2013 and the Olympic Games in 2016.”
The circle is complete
His career can be summarised with a few key stats: 197 matches, 590 points, 112 tries, 15 conversions (30 matches and 44 points this season before the final two rounds), a quarter-final at Rugby World Cup Sevens 2013 in Moscow and seventh place three years later at the Olympic Games.
He is considered a real gentleman by his peers, with no red or yellow cards to his name. It is needless to say that he will definitely miss the sevens atmosphere.
“It’s the family spirit, the essence of rugby,” he said. “With the sevens I was able to find that school yard camaraderie, where we all eat in the same place between matches. It is that spirit that we see disappear a little with 15s rugby because it has become so professionalised. I started my rugby career in school and I will be finishing with the same spirit and mentality. That is why I love rugby and my last images as a player will be that the circle is complete.”
Candelon announced on Twitter that Paris will be his last tournament; he also stated that he will start working. “I have never said that I was working, as a player, but from the moment that I stop playing, I will start working. I want to stay in rugby, to give back some of what I was afforded. For the moment what I would like to do isn’t set in stone, but I am working on projects that will give back to the game.”
Even if he is selected for the tournament in London the weekend after Paris, it will be the tournament at the Stade Jean Bouin that will be a special and emotional moment.
“It’s my last rendez-vous in France. I started the sevens in Paris, and my last tournament on a French field will also be in Paris. It’s a statement, but it is also a way to thank all of those who have supported me throughout my career all at the same time and the same place. I wanted everyone to know that my journey will stop there. With my family and friends all there in Paris, it will be a special moment.”
The celebration will be with some nostalgia, when saying goodbye to this man, who became a legend in French rugby sevens.
