Nîmes Olympique
Orinel Stronger than Pain. Oualid Orinel is the main contributor to Nîmes’ important victory against Hyères on Saturday night. Initially assisting in Najib Bennour’s goal, the former Martigues player secured the winning goal fifteen minutes before the end. This fifth goal and fifth decisive assist confirm that the Arles native is one of the most valuable Crocodiles this season. The performance is even more remarkable considering that the midfielder is playing with a bone tear and torn ligaments in his right ankle. Oualid Orinel (35) may undergo surgery on April 28, missing the last three matches of the season (Andrézieux, Istres, and Limonest). A win against Cannes on Saturday could postpone the surgical intervention. Surgery would sideline the player for three months. Pablo Martinez consulted a surgeon on Monday about maintaining the pins in his right hand’s middle finger since injuring it in the Rousset victory on April 4. The staff is hopeful of recovering their defender for the final two or three matches of the season.
Gard Lozère Cup
Anduze – Aigues-Mortes Agreed. Following the Occitanie Football League’s scheduling of the Occitanie Cup quarter-final match between Carcassonne and USS Aigues-Mortes on Saturday, May 2, the Gard-Lozère district decided to reschedule the Gard-Lozère cup semi-final on Wednesday, April 29, at 8 p.m. in Saint-Christol-lès-Alès. There is a chance that the match could be played in Anduze (R3) at 6:30 p.m. with Aigues-Mortes’ agreement (R1). The other semi-final will see Val de Cèze (D1) face Grau-du-Roi (R1) on Sunday, May 3, at 3 p.m. at the Maurice Bouquet stadium in Cornillon. The final will take place on Thursday, May 14, in Aigues-Mortes.
Rugby Club Nîmois
Botica and Veredamu, First Recruits. While the Rugby Club Nîmois season has ended without playoffs, the club is already preparing for the next one. The transfer window is open with the arrival of two experienced players. New Zealand-born (of English origin) fly-half Jacob Botica joins Stade Kaufmann. He is the son of former All Black international Frano Botica and brother of Ben Botica, who plays for Angoulême (Pro D2). On the other hand, the new Nîmois player has represented three Welsh clubs – RGC 1404, Scarlets, Dragons, and several French clubs including Agen, Saint-Médard-en-Jalles, Rennes, Angoulême, Orléans, and this season, Tarbes in Nationale. The second recruit is the return of Tavite Veredamu, who played for RCN from 2010 to 2018 before moving to Clermont, Lyon OU, and Perpignan. The French rugby sevens international will play as a back row next season.
Athletics
Alès, French Ekiden Champions. On the other side of France, on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, AC2A (Alès Cévennes Agglomeration Athletics) triumphed at the French Ekiden Championships. This discipline involves a relay marathon of six runners, each covering 5.7 or 10 km. In Châtelaillon-Plage, near La Rochelle, Maxime Bargetto, Quentin Cau, Freddy Guimard, Damien Gras, Saïd Kaddour, and Julien Samson set the Occitanie and French Ekiden Championships record (2’04”37) to claim gold on a 5 km course, part of which ran along the waterfront. In the women’s category, Audrey Berlie, Fiona Cornet, Clara Gurthez, Sarah Hasni, Delphine Py-Bilot, and Céline Senia secured silver just under 2 hours and 30 minutes (2’29”52).
Nîmes Archery Club
6 out of 7 for the Men. The first two days of the French Division 1 Outdoor Archery Championship took place in Poitiers over the weekend. The Nîmes Archery Club shined, achieving its goal with the men’s team securing six victories: Annemasse (6-0), Sarcelles (5-3), Vedène (5-1), Veneux-les-Sablons (6-0), Issy-les-Moulineaux (6-0), and Mouans-Sartoux (6-0). Despite a loss to Clermont-Ferrand (6-0), the ACN earned two bonus points. The team ranks second (14 points), just one point behind Clermont-Ferrand (15 points). This start to the season is logical as the Auvergne team held the title while the Gard team were 2025 runners-up. The weekend was tougher for the women due to Maia Tincu’s injury absence. Victoria Sebastian, Mila Fremery Delestan, and Marcelle Diombo only won three out of seven matches. The women’s team is currently in 10th place (7 points), one point behind Neuilly-sur-Marne (8 points) and Cherbourg (8 points). While below target, the Nîmes women are still in the running for the playoffs, with the top eight teams qualifying.
