14_BORDEAUX_Louis_LACOSTE
Age: 40
Stage 33

Martinique

Angela Virgal will carry the Olympic Torch. Here’s her story:

Angela's sporting story is one of 100% dedication. Her grandmother was co-founder of the 100-year-old Golden Star club, and her father – who is Angela’s mentor – is current Chair of the athletics section. From an early age, her father instilled in her the values of sportsmanship, tenacity, competitive spirit, rigour, respect and self-sacrifice. After competing as a middle-distance/road running athlete herself, by the time she was 20 Angela felt it was obvious she needed to get involved in a different way.

But she isn’t just a sportswoman; she is also a parent to athletes, an under 6s coach, a member of the board of directors, a communications director, and a handisport coach, and she is specially trained to help integrate the visually impaired, working alongside the courageous volunteers of Martinique's sports associations with their varied roles and responsibilities. And her involvement with sport goes beyond her voluntary work. For more than a decade she has been working alongside other colleagues to develop the sports section of the EPCI (Public Establishment for Intercommunal Cooperation), where she is responsible for regional planning and development.

Today, the EPCI is a benchmark for local, national and international corporate sport. Angela is a multiple medallist at World and European championship level. Her dedication to sport is also reflected in her official duties with the Martinique Athletics League, where she is a qualified referee and commentator/speaker, a role she fulfils on numerous occasions, including at the Fort-de-France International Half Marathon.