On Dec. 3, award-winning host Kelsey Nicole Nelson of “Listen In With KNN” was invited to attend a press briefing with French Sports Ambassador Samuel Ducroquet at The Embassy of France in the United States. The conversation reflected on the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics and looked ahead to France’s future sports landscape from a diplomatic perspective.
Samuel Ducroquet has held the position of Sports Ambassador since Feb. 2023, but his history of French diplomacy is far more expansive. He earned his degree in political science, so his first job out of college actually had nothing to do with sports. Ducroquet joined the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs as an international civil volunteer and was eventually appointed to the European Union Directorate at the French Foreign Ministry.
However, that soon changed when he moved to Qatar to continue his diplomatic work as a political advisor, but also introduce the new challenge of being a sports correspondent as well. Ducroquet filled this role from 2015 to 2018, and he acknowledged the uncommon route he took to finding his niche in the world of sports diplomacy.
But, he ultimately advised, “There is a good reason for getting into sports, even if you’re not an athlete, even if you come from the government.”
After his time in Qatar, Ducroquet had an experience that would solidify his passion for sports diplomacy. Beginning in 2018, he was a sports advisor and Olympic attaché at the French Embassy in Tokyo ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics. He credits this role as being the most influential of his career thus far, and reflected on it fondly.
“Being in this position enabled me to expand my network and have an idea of how many opportunities there can be,” Ducroquet noted. “You can create some ties that are going to last maybe for a long time afterwards.”
Olympic and Paralympic work became a trend for Ducroquet, as he transitioned from being an attaché in Japan to returning home to France to advise on the Paris 2024 Summer Games. He was part of the Organising Committee, serving as the senior manager of the dignitaries programme within the International Relations Directorate. Having a hand in France hosting the Olympics was a highly impactful experience for Ducroquet, as he was able to see the effects of years of work pay off in real time.
“It’s not easy to assess the success for the Games,” he admitted. “But the fact that we received so many compliments and so many nice words about the overall ambiance, the overall experience of the Games, was extremely rewarding. Because it’s the number one priority of our mission: organize the Games and project the best that France has to offer.”
Of course, the Paris Olympics were a huge success for Ducroquet and all of his colleagues who made the Games happen. But a growing concern in recent years has been sportswashing, or the intentional use of sporting events to conceal or downplay sociopolitical issues in a country. Ducroquet shared his perspective on sportswashing in relation to the Paris Olympics and questioned whether or not the manipulative practice is actually effective.
“I don’t think that nowadays, given the media presence all over the world, the capacity to reach out and take a look at what’s happening anywhere in the world, sports is sufficient to ‘wash’ the sins of a country,” he offered. “If you take the risk to organize sporting events, you expose yourself to criticisms, to observations…I don’t think the organization of sporting events will be sufficient to wipe everything away.”
After the Olympics Organising Committee, Ducroquet began his current role as a sports ambassador for French sports diplomacy. He explained that his job revolves around three main priorities: organizing major sporting events, using sports to market France as an attractive economic destination and influencing bilateral cooperation through sports. Another large part of Ducroquet’s job is working to achieve the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals through sports.
Ambassador Ducroquet will have his hands full in the coming years with a loaded slate of exciting sporting events taking place in France. The pinnacle will be the 2030 Winter Olympics in the French Alps, for which he and his colleagues are beginning to build the Organising Committee and appoint a president.
“We know that all eyes are slowly, but surely, turning onto this competition,” Ambassador Ducroquet noted. “But beforehand, we have quite a series of super interesting sporting events happening in France.”
Some of these events include the Badminton World Championship in 2025, the Cycling World Championship in 2027, and the annual French Open (Roland-Garros) and Tour de France, of course.
Samuel Ducroquet has had a long and winding path – sinuous, in his own words – to arrive at the position he holds today. He’s held many responsibilities, seen many parts of the world, and learned a lot of lessons. So what is his advice for young adults potentially interested in a career in sports? It’s pretty simple for Ducroquet.
“It’s about opportunities sometimes. You see some light over there, the door is open, and you open it. And welcome to the world of sports.”
