Interview by Patrick Koune
At 25, he belongs to that generation of athletes who grew up with high performance as their natural goal. A fencer for the French national team, bronze medalist at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Sebastian Patrice embodies a contemporary fencing: explosive, mental, profoundly human. Behind the mask, there is a vision of sport as a school of life, an almost philosophical relationship with defeat, and an elegance that extends far beyond the piste.
Report filmed at the hotel The Diamond – Albar Houses !
The requirement as a signature
In a sport where everything happens in a fraction of a second, the difference isn't solely based on speed or technique. It lies in the daily grind. Sébastien Patrice speaks of perseverance as a raw material. Falling, getting back up, starting again. The cycle is constant, almost initiatory.
At the highest level, victory is never guaranteed. Today's world number one could be eliminated in the very next round. This instability forges a rare quality: the ability to absorb defeat without losing one's way. This is where champions are born.
The mind, the driving force of the body
For him, the truth is clear: you win with your head. The body follows.
Discipline then becomes an invisible architecture that structures each day, each training session, each competition. It transcends the sporting realm to become a way of inhabiting the world.
This mental mastery doesn't mean rigidity. Before major events, he maintains his routine, surrounds himself with loved ones, and listens to the same music. Pressure isn't a burden; it becomes an energy, an adrenaline rush that puts him at the center of his performance.
A family story
Fencing wasn't part of his heritage. In Marseille, football remained the king of sports. But by following his brother to competitions, he discovered a discipline that suited him: individual, strategic, demanding.
Today, the Patrice family has become a true sabre dynasty. His brother, rival and teammate, shares international podiums with him. His sister is a junior world champion. His partner, who is Hungarian, is a two-time world champion.
Fencing structures their daily lives, their travels, their conversations. And yet, around the family table, they try to talk about other things. Proof that balance remains a necessity.
The season that transforms
He doesn't cite a single decisive attack, but an entire year. A paradoxical season where he becomes world number one, strings together victories, then fails in the major tournaments.
A pivotal period.
Because it teaches him to assume a certain status.
Because it reminds him that a champion is still a man.
It is this clear-sightedness that makes him progress more than a medal.
Elegance as a state of mind
Historically a sport of dueling and honor, fencing retains a noble dimension. But for Sébastien Patrice, elegance lies neither in the white uniform nor in tradition. It lies in the attitude.
In resilience.
In the way of winning.
In the way they lose.
Whether in a suit or a tracksuit, elegance is an inner energy.
Pleasure as a driving force
To last, you have to know how to reinvent yourself. Find joy in the details: a trip, a journey, a meeting, a moment shared with your brother at a competition.
Motivation doesn't come solely from titles. It stems from everything that sport allows you to experience around it.
After the track
Fully aware of the brevity of a sports career, he's already thinking about what comes next. Entrepreneurship, entertainment, event creation. Always with this central idea: to bring people together, celebrate, create experiences.
Just like on the track, it's about being an active participant.
Fencing as a school of life
To those who want to get started, he doesn't talk about money or fame. He talks about character. About the ability to take criticism. About a taste for hard work.
The rest is just a consequence.
A generation in motion
Based at INSEP for almost a decade, Sébastien Patrice belongs to an elite that thinks about sport differently. More open to the world, more aware of its image, more attentive to the balance between performance and personal identity.
His playing field is a 14-meter track. But his real battle is internal. And that's where the greatest victory is won.
Photos: Patrick Koune
Sponsor of the report: Shock
