Elite Squash: A Lever to Develop the Sport?

Interview with Rémy Mabillon (Annecy’s Sponsor until 2025)

Lilian Vimal de Murs

Director at Société Sportive de Jeu de Paume et de Racquets, Paris France

After the playoffs — the annual French squash event bringing together the world elite (and others) — I learned that Annecy, the team that had dominated for years without challenge, was coming to an end.               Why?

In Search of a Shadow

I wanted to trace the source, thinking that the person behind all this must have an interesting vision of squash and the sports ecosystem! And therefore likely had answers to my many questions!

I didn’t know the man behind this nearly 10-year-long journey that led to such overwhelming dominance in French squash. And why Annecy, of all places?

In short, I had many unanswered questions. So I picked up my phone and sent a message in a bottle on LinkedIn to one Rémy Mabillon — the businessman who carried this dream with tireless dedication and, more importantly, made it real.

And before talking to him, of course, I reached out to Jérôme Elhaïk — the indispensable and encyclopedic memory of French squash. He certainly had a few insights to share… and he did!

Who was Rémy? A squash lover? A businessman with a development strategy?We had a long conversation, and almost all my questions turned out to be entirely off-topic.

Rémy Mabillon: Squash? I’ve Never Played! Well, Once…

When Rémy told me he liked the friendly aspect of squash — playing then chatting with friends over a beer — I naturally asked if he had competed.

"Competition? Oh no, I’ve never played squash! Well, once… 20 minutes with Grégory Gaultier."

Needless to say, I was stunned!

So how did we get here? All these teams, these clubs…?

It was almost by chance that Rémy Mabillon entered the world of squash. In 2015, during a conversation with a friend, a club owner in Geneva, he was asked to finance a glass court for the French First Series Championships. He agreed — without really knowing the sport. But that first step became the beginning of an adventure.

Through various encounters, he met high-level players whose simplicity, discipline, and high standards impressed him. Moved by their mindset, he decided to support them financially, with a sincere desire to help them reach their highest potential.

Since then, the businessman has invested in four multi-sport clubs, all equipped with squash courts: three in Mauritius, one in Annecy. He sponsored players, then the Annecy team from 2015 — until this season.

And I, who have long wondered what drives a passionate person to invest in elite sports: Is it really a lever to develop the sport?

With Rémy Mabillon, I found a rare gem: entrepreneur, club owner, sponsor, passionate spectator — an actor at the local, national, and perhaps global level?

Elite Squash: In Search of Passion, Discipline, and High Standards

Though never a top-level athlete himself, Rémy loves sports and can spend hours watching football, rugby, tennis, squash, cycling, etc.

“It’s a bit like watching a carpenter, a glassblower — there’s passion, love for skillful movement — and it looks effortless.”

What he loves about elite sports is the hard work that makes effort seem "easy" for the spectator. But more than that, it’s the culture of discipline, the obsession, and relentless work that fascinates him. It resembles the business world — at least the part of it he enjoys.

And it’s this effort that fascinates him: the man or woman behind the athlete, more than the sport itself. That’s what he wanted to support, by sponsoring individuals to help them reach their full potential and go as high as possible.

High-Level Sport: An Investment Without Return?

Visibility? Meh.Profitability? It cost him €150,000 per year. A sum that could have been spent elsewhere…

So why do it? For the joy, above all. And the chance to support crazy dreamers chasing their goals!

But does it help grow the sport? Yes, most pros play along: they visit schools, train with kids — maybe sparking a vocation. But does it bring in new players? Not sure…

If you listen to the pros: the development path is more tournaments and bigger prize money. It’s logical they’d say that. But I’ve always doubted that — and when I share this with Rémy, he replies:

“Go to Front de Seine and ask players if they know who the world number 1 is. Rarely.” And it’s true. At Jeu de Paume, after a game, maybe 5–10% of players know a name from the world top 10.

Look: Annecy brought the best players in the world, won French championships — and nothing, not a single page in L'Équipe.

Maybe a team in Paris would get more attention… to be continued.

So Then: What Strategy to Develop Squash?

It’s not his goal, nor his role. Already busy with his professional commitments, Rémy sees sport first and foremost as a matter of human connection. He invests, then delegates.

He’s created clubs — “but with or without squash courts, they functioned just the same.”

I think I understood that what matters most to this sports enthusiast is the spirit of sport. It instills discipline, drive, a culture of excellence… The world would be better if everyone played a sport.

That’s why he now wants to promote sports in general, through his various clubs, but also through his “RM Academy,” which makes its facilities available to promising young athletes.

And especially in Mauritius, Mabillon insists that part of his operations be socially inclusive:

“Out of 250 kids playing football, you have 50 whose parents can’t afford €500 a year — yet those kids are just as hungry, if not more. So for them, we make it work.”

Well, that didn’t help me much… How do we grow this sport at its roots? Creating champions is great, but for champions to exist, we need fans. Preferably, fans who spend a bit of money on their passion — that’s part of what funds champions (and especially everything else)!

Rémy talks to me about the Olympics, where squash will make its debut in 2028. Squash will be on TV, visible — and with a champion like Victor Crouin (whose name came up several times in our conversation), this could be a real turning point.Dear Victor Crouin — you’ve got a job to do, and you’d better not catch a cold in L.A.!

What I found captivating about Rémy is that he speaks quickly, with passion. He quickly started using informal speech with me — it felt like chatting with a former rugby player I’d known forever. It was a rare, enriching conversation with a humanist.

And what is a humanist? Someone striving for an ideal. And for Rémy, one of the paths to that ideal is through sport.