Florent and Noël, during the third stop of season 14 of Beijing Express. – Patrick ROBERT / M6
- Florent and Noël were eliminated at the gates of the season 14 finale of Beijing Express. The pair found themselves in possession of a black eliminatory envelope.
- “We showed that we were able to go to the end and unfortunately fate wanted it to end like this”, declared Noël to 20 minutes.
- “When you’re two boys who don’t speak English and even less the local language, it’s true that it’s complicated. With our templates, people were on the reserve. They were afraid ”, deplores Florent.
Florent and Noël, the Catalan colleagues, were eliminated at the gates of the finale of the fourteenth season of Beijing Express. Three events were on the menu for the episode broadcast Tuesday on M6. At the end of each of them, the pair who arrived last had to draw lots for a black envelope. It turns out that each of the three duos still in the race must have gone through it, but it is that of the two men which contained the eliminatory card… The final will therefore oppose Christophe and Claire on Tuesday against Cinzia and Rose-Marie. 20 minutes joined Florent and Noël on Monday noon via WhatsApp to come back with them on their journey. The opportunity to see that the bloody character that they show on the screen is also deployed in everyday life.
Is it the worst possible exit to be eliminated from “Beijing Express” on the spur of the moment?
Florent: Yes and no. We’d rather go out with a card we didn’t choose than to lose a race. Afterwards, it’s the game.
Christmas : We do not regret, it’s fate. In this competition, we fought to the end. We gave everything we had in our heart, our guts, our blood, our breath. Unfortunately, it was played on the envelope …
F.: No, it was played with the car that took the wrong road.
NOT. : Okay, but the exit is when you get to the envelopes. When Flo opened his envelope and we saw the word “eliminatory”, it was fate that chose him. We were three strong pairs: Christophe and Claire …
F.: No, but he knows it, it’s okay …
NOT. : But leave me too! Go on continue.
F.: That’s all: we lost, we were unlucky.
NOT. : Let me talk for a second! I just wanted to say that when Flo opened the envelope, I saw the whole race go by. We don’t regret anything, him and me …
F.: Yes, I am a little sorry.
NOT. : Me, I do not regret! And neither did Flo either because we gave our all in this adventure, we showed that we were able to go to the end and unfortunately fate wanted it to end like this.
Did you think you could go this far?
F.: We told ourselves that if we managed to pass the first step, it was already good. Then we got caught up in the game.
NOT. : When we put the first foot in the adventure, it was nothingness, we did not know how far we were going to go. It’s a very physical, stressful race.
You don’t speak English, you are two men… Do you think you had to put in more effort than the other pairs?
F.: When you are two boys who do not speak English and even less the local language, it is true that it is complicated. With our templates, people were on the reserve. They were scared. When we introduced ourselves, the presence of the camera still helped us a little. Each time we have been lodged with locals, it has been a stroke of luck: we have found the right people, who have confidence.
NOT. : We had to express ourselves through gestures and we tended to speak loudly. We fought a lot to move forward. But we got there, like what, nothing is impossible.
On several occasions during the various stages the tone rose between you… Is it also like that as colleagues at work?
F.: It’s bloodshot. You have to understand that it’s a competition, there is a gain at the end, so there is stress, a desire to get there. In the work, one shouts, but it is never in the meanness. We never come to hit each other. We never really had a fight.
NOT. : Me, I was not attracted by the gain but by the adventure. For me, it was a challenge: I had to go all the way. Flo and I didn’t have the same competitive spirit. Indeed, he and I have bloody temperaments, we are quite manly men. Flo wanted to impose himself because strategically he had his idea. And I had mine. Although at times in a race you are stressed, panicked, wanting to move forward and yelling at each other because one or the other is going or not…
F.: Make it short, Christmas.
NOT. : Leave me…
F.: I can’t stay too long, make it short!
NOT. : (He gets annoyed) I’m cutting it short! So, I’ll explain. (Rises in a tone) I don’t know what I meant! You’re going to stop Flo! ?
F.: Come on, next question.
NOT. : No, no, no, please! Please let me finish!
F.: (laughs)
NOT. : Once the bloodshot was over, Flo and I would get over it all and start again.
You know each other well because you work together, but did you discover anything about each other during the adventure?
NOT. : Yes, I fell in love with my partner, I’m going to pacify him (laughs). I’m joking !
F.: I didn’t hear… I’m in Spain, moreover, that’s why I would like us to ask questions quickly… Tell me, I’m listening.
Have you discovered Christmas in a new light?
F.: No, we knew our temperaments because we work together, overall it went well.
NOT. : From work, I knew how Flo was, but in the competition …
F.: Hurry, damn! (Laughing and annoyed)
NOT. : Alright, come on hi!
F.: I’m in Spain, Christmas… Just make short sentences.
NOT. : He should have called you before and me after. There you go, if you hurry, you pack some suitcases … Okay, go on to another question if you please.
Are you going to see the public’s reactions?
F.: I do not watch what is said on the networks, because if we started to go and see, we would quickly lose our mind. Those who think well of me, it makes me happy and those who think badly, they must understand that this is just a game, that we are in a competition and that when this competition is over, we are people just like everyone else.
NOT. : We are pairs from different regions and many viewers support the candidates from their roots. On social networks, it’s true that people get a little carried away, criticize strongly, but that doesn’t bother us. Everyone has the right to express their opinions. It’s part of the competition, we don’t blame them, it’s not that bad.