Fabien Lamirault: class 2 para table tennis world champion, 2022

For Fabien, it all began at the age of 17 when a car accident left him quadriplegic. Sporty by nature, he discovered table tennis during his rehabilitation. He quite naturally carved out a niche for himself in the sport. Once he had finished his rehabilitation, he joined the Cercle Sportif de l’Institution Nationale des Invalides de Paris (a sports club within the national institute for people with disabilities based in Paris), which is where he met his current coach – Fabrice Kosiak.

He took part in his first international competition in Sicily in 2003 – but he did so in the wrong category for his particular disability. Once he had finally got into the right category (class 2), his Paralympic adventure began at the London 2012 Paralympic Games – he won a bronze medal in the individual competition and a silver medal in the team event.

From that moment on, Fabian was on the road to success: double World Champion in 2014, then double European Champion in 2015. The following year, the Rio Games saw him become the double Paralympic Champion, where he won a gold medal in the individual competition and in the team event. Selected for the Tokyo Games, the Team ENGIE athlete retained his Paralympic Champion title, once again winning a gold medal in the individual competition and in the team event! 

ENGIE has been supporting Fabien since 2020 as part of the “Performance Pact” set up by the French Sports Foundation. Since the scheme was founded in 2014, ENGIE has supported around 20 or so high-level athletes during their preparations for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Across two Olympics (Rio in 2016 and Tokyo in 2020), Team ENGIE won nine medals, including three golds. Going forward, the goal is naturally to qualify for and compete at the 2024 Olympics for the ten members of Team ENGIE.

With this third world title, Fabien has confirmed his place as world leader in his category. With the Paris Olympics 18 months away, his aim is to retain his Paralympic title for the third consecutive time after the Rio and Tokyo Games. This would be a true feat and would gain him a highly deserved entry into the pantheon of French sport.