The French badminton federation has appointed Spaniard Fernando Rivas, the coach of 2016 Olympic champion Carolina Marin, to a senior position ahead of the 2024 Games in Paris.
Rivas will remain the coach of three-time world champion Marin and will split his time between the two positions, having signed a part-time contract that runs until the next Olympics.
French badminton president Yohan Penel made the decision to call on Rivas “to add internationally recognized badminton expertise” to his existing coaching staff.
France has never won an Olympic medal in badminton. None of the country’s players made it past the group stage at the Tokyo Olympics last year.
Rivas’ arrival is the latest in a series of high-profile foreign recruitments into French sport made ahead of 2024.
Dutch swimming coach Jacco Verhaeren, German rowing guru Jurgen Grobler and South Korean archery coach Oh Seon-Tek have all been hired to help France win medals at residence.
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