Célia dreamed for fourteen years of participating in Koh Lanta. His wish came true, but the awakening was brutal. The 49-year-old Norman, family assistant by profession, was the first to be eliminated in the new season, The Sacred Fire, launched on TF1 on Tuesday. In the sights of her teammates, she tried to make an alliance with Tania and Benjamin. But these two didn’t keep their word…
Were you surprised by your elimination?
No, I expected that. Death in the soul (laughs). After, at Koh Lanta, there are often twists, so I was hoping that one would happen. I wanted more loyalty and honesty from the people I made a covenant with.
Are you talking about Tania and Benjamin?
Gilles had the honesty to tell me that he no longer knew who he should vote for. I tried to win him over, to turn his brains around… If he had followed me, I would have led him far. But I wasn’t sure of him, I was right to doubt (laughs). I was more confident in Tania and Benjamin. I had the doubly bitter defeat, but that’s how it is. I quickly consoled myself with them, after all, I had only known them for three days.
Facing the camera, after your elimination, you had very harsh words for yourselves. In particular, you said that your children would not be proud of you…
Yes, I really thought so. When I left for this adventure, they took me to the station to catch the train. They supported me like a fighter, I couldn’t see myself going home with this defeat. For me, this vision, during my elimination, it was unbearable.
Why wouldn’t they be proud?
They don’t know I said that yet. I was ashamed of them because they are in the army – my eldest, 22, is a firefighter from Paris and the second is 18 and is engaged in the 2nd RIMa at Le Mans – and I plant myself on a course in fighter… It was the worst possible scenario for me: I was not worthy of my sons. I wanted them to be proud of me and that won’t be the case, you have to be realistic. I would have liked to shine in the events for which I had trained. I couldn’t, so I have the balls. But life is made of defeats, you have to know how to bounce back. Being a fighter also means turning the page and setting off on other adventures.
But your sons told you they wouldn’t be proud of you if you failed the obstacle course?
No, they told me: “Above all, shut up, don’t get carried away, you’re impulsive. As a result, I may have faded away too much, but hey, it wouldn’t have changed anything compared to what I had done on this course. But they tell me I’m a great mom and that’s all that matters.
You were the oldest this season. Did you feel like you were a victim of ageism?
Yes. Some even told me that they were going to vote against me because I was the dean. It is clear that my age played against me. In a group of six young people who have a lot in common, it’s more difficult to fit in, we don’t necessarily have the same interests. I waited fourteen years to participate, I applied every year, I advanced through the casting process five times. It’s a shame I wasn’t selected earlier.
If you could go back and change one thing about your adventure, what would you do?
I would not gain the five kilos in two months that the doctor asked me to gain before leaving (laughs). Because of that, I was slower on the course. I should have taken only two.
What is your best memory of your ” Koh Lanta ” ?
Kick off. I had so dreamed of seeing the island in the distance from a boat. I said to myself: “that’s it, you have your dream, go find it”.
Would you like to add something, talk about a subject that we have not mentioned?
I would say to all those who want to participate and who don’t believe in it very much, never listen to others. Not to pay attention to those who will discourage you, say to you “Didn’t you understand that you would never go? Walt Disney said that if you can dream something, then you can do it. I agree with him on this sentence.