'I beat cancer by refusing to give up tennis'
Guillaume Delamarre’s story is both powerful and inspiring. The 58-year-old Frenchman is currently in remission and in the coming weeks is set to be declared free of cancer following a five-year battle with tennis at its heart.
In 2019, Delamarre was found to have a human papillomavirus, which account for about five per cent of cancers worldwide and predominantly affect women. His indeed turned cancerous and he was given a 30 per cent chance of survival.
Throughout the next few years and regardless of how difficult the fight became, Delamarre took comfort and solace in tennis – a sport he has loved and played since the age of six.
At the peak of chemotherapy treatment, Delamarre lost 20kg but refused to cut tennis from his daily routine, insisting it gave him the energy, mental fortitude and drive to stand up to the brutal disease threatening his life.
“I fought and beat cancer by refusing to stop playing tennis,” Delamarre told itftennis.com. “I believe continuing to play allowed me to endure heavy medical treatments and then to rebuild myself physically and mentally.
“I know the natural thing would be not to play, but it was normal for me. I did not want to believe what the doctors were saying to me, and I told them, ‘I do not want to you speak like this’. I felt good at the time of diagnosis, but of course it became more difficult.
“I went to the maximum weight I could lose before they put me in a bed and had to give me food direct, but playing tennis gave me the energy, resilience and endorphins to get through, to take the strongest treatments they had.
“It was a personal decision and a natural one for me. I did not want to stop social contact either, now I want to tell the world about the benefits of sport during chemotherapy."
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It was predominantly ITF Masters Tennis that Delamarre played during his treatment, although remarkably, despite being in his fifties, he also entered qualifying at seven ITF World Tennis Tour events.
In terms of the ITF Masters tournaments, he took the decision to compete outside of France as he did not want his fellow countrymen – he is the top-ranked national player within his age category – to see his decline.
He predominantly played in Spain but also Greece and Jamaica, where he was holidaying in-between bouts of treatment, and there is one story in particular which sticks in his memory – and brings a tear to his eye.
“Tennis was really important physically but also mentally – to think about something other than cancer,” said Delamarre. “It was also important to go out and meet people. It felt good to get up in the morning, have a shower and put tennis kit on.
“The ITF World Tennis Masters Tour was a big thing for me. I continued to meet a lot of people I hadn’t met before and they listened to my story, appreciating the way I was taking the situation.
Guillaume and Wifredo Vilaldach-Garcia
“I played a match against a guy called Wifredo Vilaldach-Garcia of Spain soon after I was diagnosed. He beat me 6-0 6-1 but before shaking my hand he asked everyone watching to applaud me. He wanted everyone to hear my story.
“We had a beer afterwards and we said that we were friends for life. It was such a crazy situation at that time, and this was the beginning of getting through the difficult times.”
Away from tennis, Delamarre has principally been employed within the IT industry but has found work hard to come by since his diagnosis, although to his own admission he is in a fortunate financial position.
In 2022, he established Play Again, a not-for-profit organisation founded upon the principle that sport better equips people physically and mentally for the fight against illness.
Play Again supports people in the pursuit of physical activities as a contribution to their health and wellbeing, communicates such benefits through scientists and health professionals and funds further research.
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On 28 March, by which time Delamarre is expecting to be officially cancer free, Play Again is hosting a major fundraising event in the form of a charity auction at Hotel Drouot in Paris.
The intention to is to ensure at least 50 people are aided in their medical recovery by returning to sport, while proceeds will also be allocated to Institut Curie – a Play Again research partner.
There are some amazing items to be auctioned, including the autographed racket with which Novak Djokovic won his maiden Grand Slam at the Australian Open in 2008.
While Delamarre will never win a Grand Slam, tennis – together with his own inner-determination, bravery and refusal to surrender – has in many ways given him so much more. He is certainly not ready to close the book on his own tennis-playing story quite yet.
“I will never stop playing tennis,” he added. “I am nearly 60 and the target is to play for the French team at the World Championships when I’m in my sixties.”
Guillaume Delamarre – a true inspiration.
Click here for further information about Play Again
Instagram: @playagain.asso
Bids for auction items can be also made at: www.drouot.com/fr