VIDEO. French marathon champion, Anaïs Quemener had to face breast cancer

In 2015, Anaïs Quemener was 24 years old and preparing for the French marathon championship when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. The young woman had no medical history. She had been doing high-level sport since childhood, coached by her father, a sports enthusiast. “It hit me like a meteorite”she explains today. Anaïs Quemener already has a background as a seasoned athlete. At 15, she broke the French record for the 10 km in cadets in 38 minutes.

Shortly after being diagnosed, the young woman was taken into care. She had to put her work in a hospital on hold because her immune defenses were too weak. Despite the chemotherapy, Anaïs Quemener did not lose sight of her goal: to participate in the French marathon championship. “When I went running with the group, it was my moment of escape, I was the Anaïs of before” says the athlete. A year after the end of the treatments, against all expectations, she became French marathon champion and beat her own record by 2 minutes. “It was my victory.” Since then, she has been recognized as a high-level athlete and has benefited from flexible working hours at the hospital where she works so that she can continue to train every day and live partly from her passion.