{"id":321915,"date":"2025-08-06T07:24:16","date_gmt":"2025-08-06T07:24:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/321915\/"},"modified":"2025-08-06T07:24:16","modified_gmt":"2025-08-06T07:24:16","slug":"a-life-changing-week-for-bourdon-sansus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/321915\/","title":{"rendered":"A life-changing week for Bourdon-Sansus"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Some weeks leave a deeper mark than others in a rugby player\u2019s life. On Saturday 2nd August, France<\/a> scrum-half Pauline Bourdon-Sansus found out she was selected<\/a> for the Women\u2019s Rugby World Cup<\/a> in England. It will be her second, after her first taste of the tournament in New Zealand in 2022.<\/p>\n

But three days earlier, she\u2019d already had the most meaningful news of her week \u2013 and her life: the birth of her son with her wife, Laure Sansus.<\/p>\n

\u201cWelcome Arthur,\u201d she wrote simply on Instagram on July 29th to announce their baby\u2019s arrival.<\/p>\n

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Suspended for the warm-up match against England in Mont-de-Marsan on August 9th, and for France\u2019s tournament opener against Italy on August 23rd \u2013 a consequence of her post-match remarks about refereeing<\/a> after the Elite 1 final<\/a> lost by her club, Stade Toulousain, to Stade Bordelais, Bourdon-Sansus will have a few more days at home to enjoy her newborn.<\/p>\n

More than a year ago, she said she already felt like the \u201cmum of the group\u201d, in reference to her experience in a team full of younger players. Now, the word has a different meaning.<\/p>\n

Sansus, who retired after the last World Cup<\/a>, carried the baby, making it possible for Pauline to continue playing.<\/p>\n

During the Six Nations, Bourdon-Sansus couldn\u2019t be there for scans and key moments. For the World Cup<\/a>, a plan is being put in place with the French Rugby Union (FFR) so she can at least see her son while she\u2019s away.<\/p>\n

A similar arrangement was tested earlier last year with Agathe Sochat<\/a>, the hooker who\u2019s also in France\u2019s<\/a> World Cup<\/a> squad. In 2024, during the Six Nations, the FFR allowed her daughter Nina \u2013 now three \u2013 to join her at the CNR in Marcoussis.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cMy wife Ad\u00e8le brings her here and looks after her. She\u2019s on-site, right here at the centre,\u201d Sochat explained to RugbyPass. \u201cI take part in every meeting, every training, all the meals. But during the day, we get breaks, and I go see her when I can. Even 20 minutes does me a world of good.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving her here makes the weeks feel shorter. It\u2019s the first time something like this has been done. It\u2019s a huge help and I\u2019m so grateful. From a personal wellbeing point of view, it\u2019s a lifeline.\u201d<\/p>\n

That initiative was successful \u2013 and it\u2019s now being used again. Thanks to that experience, FFR and the Bourdon-Sansus family will aim to make sure Arthur gets time with his mum during the six weeks of the tournament. And maybe, through that shared effort, the whole France squad can build something even more powerful.<\/p>\n