Rugby: “140 years of history”, page racing, from the beginning to the present day

Its long history is now engraved on paper. On the occasion of its 140th anniversary, Racing decided to call on its memory and trace the entire life of the club, from its birth within the walls of the Condorcet high school in Paris to the present day. Titled 140 Years of Stories, an 848-page opus weighing four kilograms and containing more than a thousand photographs, the book will hit bookstores in mid-December but go on sale this Sunday, on the sidelines of the clash. of the top 14 against Clermont at 17:00 at Paris La Défense Arena, where the club’s former players were invited to join the party.

The book took almost four years to complete. “Incredibly, before that there was no book describing the history of racing,” emphasizes Patrick Serrier, former captain of the French Champions club in 1990 and then general manager from 2018 until the end of last season. I told this to President Jackie Lorenzetti, who entrusted me with this project. »

The only club to host the Olympics twice

The problem is that during the split between the Racing Club de France and its main sections, including rugby in 1995, all archives disappeared. I had to collect all possible documents from each other. More than 6,000 recovered items have been digitized. Racing is the only club that has hosted the Olympic Games, even twice: in 1900 at the Croix-Catelan (in the Bois de Boulogne) and in 1924 at the Stade Colombes (Hauts-de-Seine), says Patrick Serrier. I have always been interested in its history, but I have discovered incredible things. World War I hero pilot Maurice Boyot, who won 35 fights before being shot down in 36 in 1918, continued to play rugby between flights. On match days, he landed at Le Bourget, arrived for the match, and then returned to base on his plane. He went to his commander, told him that he had deserted for two hours, that he deserved to be punished and therefore should be sent on a very dangerous mission. »

Fame facts, anecdotes are linked on the pages. All the finals are now listed, starting with the first ever French title won (4:3) against the Stade Français in the Parc de Bagatelle (Bois de Boulogne) on March 20, 1892. Modernity obliges, 12 QR codes refer to videos with unpublished images. We’ve been running for over a century, we’re collecting tasty moments like the 1920 semi-final against Stade Toulousain, for example, or the closeness of the 1990 champions dressing room. The memory of racing has now found its way.

140 Years of Stories, En Exergue, 848 pages, 59 euros.