At the heart of Raid’s mission to the Springboks: ‘We build a relationship of trust’
It’s a 100% Southern Hemisphere final that brings together the two best teams in rugby history, New Zealand and South Africa, on Saturday evening at the Stade de France. A shocker as the All Blacks and Springboks will be closely watched by the guardian angels responsible for their security since their arrival in France for the World Cup. Protectors, very close and secret, from the same elite police unit: the Raid.
The intervention force, together with GIGN, was tasked with monitoring the twenty teams of the World Cup in France (8 September – 28 October). For the gendarmes, the formations of Groups C and D, for the police officers, the selections of Groups A and B, bringing together in particular the South Africans and the New Zealanders but also the French XV of Fabien Galthie, whose path in the competition was completed during the quarter-finals on 15 October. Their mission? Follow players and staff almost everywhere. in the hotel. In training. In matches. When traveling.
“We create a security bubble around them.”
The exact arrangements for the raid were not announced for security reasons, but the police rely on other police personnel for their mission. Here, a patrol is stationed in front of the Blues training center in Aix-en-Provence. There, counter-drone operators are responsible for monitoring the skies during the sessions. “We are creating a security bubble around them,” insists Christophe, head of the mission to South Africa. They should just care about rugby, and what they are there for. »
“We are here to ensure they have complete peace of mind,” said Nicholas, his counterpart at the Blues. We have to be transparent, but present. The players and the coaching staff know that we are there, and this reassures them. » For this reason, Raid Police officers sometimes begin their mission before the competition. Nicolas and his teammates followed the 15th Tour de France in the autumn 2021 and 2022 rounds before joining them in August. Christophe and his men meet the Springboks when they arrive in Marseille in November 2022.
Real closeness
“They were staying in the same hotel where the World Cup group stage was held, which allowed us to decide our direction,” says the police officer. Over time, we build a relationship of trust. This does not mean that we are part of the team. We don’t enter the locker rooms if we’re not invited, for example. » “It is a sacred place,” says Nicola. We enter it, and we remain discreet, if people from outside go there. »
This was the case, for example, when Emmanuel Macron descended on the Blues after the opening match or in the aftermath of the elimination to the Springboks. Eventually, a rapprochement was established between the police and the Tricolores.
In November 2022, raid leader Jean-Baptiste Dollion came to Marcoussy to view his unit’s work and his team leader spoke, at the group’s request. He even went in one of the unit’s vehicles to the Aix-en-Provence hospital to be at Antoine Dupont’s bedside after a facial fracture against Namibia.
“No matter what the place, we will not leave them.”
“We eat with them, we live with them, and it facilitates trust,” says Nicola. When we should tell them: Now we are leaving this placeThey listen to us more easily. » We must protect these groups of about sixty people, including players and staff, from the possibility of intrusive nosy people, but also stay on the lookout for the slightest possible attack. “Even if South Africa is not a sensitive team in the strict sense of the word, the current context reminds us that we must always be careful,” Christophe emphasizes.
On Saturday, he and police officers from the unit will be with the Springboks in the final match of the competition at the Stade de France. If necessary, be prepared to follow them late into the night in case of post-Mass celebrations. “No matter the location, we will not leave them,” the police officer said. To the airport and back to South Africa. Takeoff is synonymous with the end of the raid mission.
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