Biathlon: Chloé Bened talks about Camille Bened
This season, Camille Bened, 24, won the overall ranking in the IBU Biathlon Cup. After two difficult winters marked by overtraining and then a serious injury, the Chablais native has managed to shine consistently at the highest international level. Her performances have opened the door to the World Cup, which she will discover this week in Oslo-Holmenkollen (Norway).
A few days before the big event, Nordic Magazine asked Chloé Bened, her little sister who retired from the shooting ranges at the end of winter 2024, to tell us about her Camille Bened. Chloé, who is studying to become a beautician, has some moving things to say.
Proud to see her sister shine at the highest level
“Of course I’m proud of my big sister, she’s my pride and joy! Camille has always been an example to me and my first idol. I’ve always wanted to be like Camille, so of course I’m proud of what she’s done this season, of all the years she’s put in, and of her impressive list of achievements. Admittedly, I’m no longer part of the biathlon world, but with her, I still have one foot in it, and I think that’s great because she still lets me experience what I’m not experiencing any more. I’m right behind her, I’m with her, I follow every race she does on my phone! I watch and send her messages. I haven’t been around much during training because I’ve got my own life now, but I’ve still got a little bit of me in biathlon thanks to her.”
What Camille Bened had to say about her season
“Paradoxically, she doesn’t tell me much about her season! She puts in place what she’s prepared throughout the training period and does her bit on her own, doing the training that’s asked of her. I think I’d describe Camille as a very rigorous person who lives and breathes biathlon. She never gives up and, frankly, that’s her strength. I think that’s why she’s where she is today.”
A look back at Camille Bened’s two difficult seasons
“The last two seasons have not been easy for Camille, either mentally or physically. She suffered a succession of physical problems and I think we can say that this is a great reward. First there was the year when she couldn’t finish the season because she was overtraining, and then the second year when she had one injury after another. When she fell and broke her shoulder and tailbone at Bessans, it was very, very hard for her and for me… She never thought she’d be back competing in January like she was. She didn’t want to have a sleepless season, and she was able to come back at the end of the season and perform well despite the fact that the start of the season was completely off. This test is a real strength for her.”
The end of Chloé Bened’s career, a complicated time for the two sisters
“The end of my career was complicated for both of us, especially the beginning of the preparation period when we were separated, whereas the summer before we’d been training together. This time, it was Camille without Chloé, and that was a bit hard. Personally, I went through a big period where I didn’t want anyone talking to me about training and sport any more because, like any top-level athlete who decides to stop his career, it’s a mental burden… Today, I’m back on track, I’m doing sport again, but I needed that moment when I didn’t want to go and train and do sport any more because it immediately brought me back to competition and I didn’t want that”.”
“It’s true that I let Camille down a bit over the summer, when she was training on her own. I had my job on the side [she’s training to be a beautician, editor’s note] so I couldn’t necessarily go with her, except for two or three sessions. We didn’t necessarily talk much about what she was feeling… On the courses, when we were together, we relied a lot on each other. Even though we weren’t in the same rooms and we were together all the time during the sessions, we talked a lot. Meeting up in the evening, chatting for 5 minutes, being able to support each other and travelling or packing together, was a bit like our refuge. We were each other’s refuge because we felt supported. If Camille wasn’t feeling well, she came to see me, and vice versa. But during the training sessions, the preparation and the start of the season, she was always on her own… But Camille had the strength of character to get through it! She’s a bit of a loner who doesn’t mind being alone, compared to me.”
Why is Camille Bened performing so well this season?
“I don’t really know why it worked this year. I’d just like to say that it’s the culmination of everything she’s given over so many years. She’s such a rigorous girl who richly deserves everything she’s experienced in recent months. After all she’s achieved, it’s only natural that she should win the IBU Cup crystal globe. It was her dream, but it was also the dream of the whole family to see the big sister at her highest level. This winter, everything was lined up to make it work, and I’d like to say a big well done to her, it’s just exceptional what she’s done! From start to finish, she didn’t give up… even though she had problems right up to the end, like that fall with the Ukrainian before the last stage. She had to fight hard and she succeeded! It’s really the work of a champion, and the culmination of so many things. That’s why she deserves it, because she never gave up, and that’s her strength today.”
Camille Bened, her little sister’s idol, on hand at Oslo-Holmenkollen this weekend
“She has enormous support from all our family, not just me, but also my parents, my other sisters [Justine and Ninon, editor’s note], her boyfriend, friends, family in general… We’ll always be with her in her little life as an athlete, because she’s our star, our champion, our idol. For me, it’s true that ever since I was little – we’re two years apart – I wanted to do everything like Camille! I wanted to have the same track record, the same medals, to go to the same places as her. Frankly, I don’t have anything else to say except that it’s exceptional! It’s just breathtaking. I’ve never really had an idol in biathlon, but today I can say that my idol is my sister, and always will be. I don’t know when she’s going to stop her career, we’ve never talked about it, but I wish her all the best and all the best. I’ll always be behind her, whatever happens.”
“Her place in the World Cup is just reward for everything she’s achieved this season, and we can only wish her every success, to have fun, enjoy herself and gain as much experience as possible. I hope that this will open the door to next year’s World Cup! In fact, we’ll be there to support her in Oslo – we’re going with a dozen of us!”
- IBU Cup: Camille Bened wins the crystal globe in the pursuit, taking over from Océane Michelon
- IBU Cup: Chablais’ Camille Bened lifts the crystal globe in the mass start
- Camille Bened becomes the third Frenchwoman to win the IBU Cup crystal globe
- “It’s an immense source of pride”: Camille Bened reflects on her IBU Cup overall victory, synonymous with the Crystal Globe
- A fall at the hands of a Ukrainian woman, a trip through the mud, covered in bandages and a visit to an Estonian physiotherapist: the secret story of Camille Bened’s conquest of the IBU Cup globe.
- Firsts for Camille Bened and Amandine Mengin, the boys’ sevens: the French team selection for the Oslo-Holmenkollen World Cup finals
- “Biathlon will remain engraved in my memory”: Chloé Bened, 21, announces the end of her career
- “Unforgettable memories”: dressed all in pink, Chloé Bened experienced her last race with emotion, nostalgia and tears.
