1/ Hello Youry, I follow you on social media and I see that you are a dynamic and committed person. Could you tell us about your personal and educational background? In short, who are you?

I have always been interested in sports. With a mother in judo (Michèle Fagour, the first black belt woman in Martinique in 1983), I was exposed to it from a young age and it created a certain drive in me. I first started in judo. Its combative nature also showed me how to approach life by fighting!

I went to Guadeloupe to study (Bachelor’s degree) in STAPS specialized in Adapted Physical Activity (Adapted Physical Activities encompass all physical and sports activities adapted to the capacities of people with chronic illness or disability). After my Bachelor’s degree in Guadeloupe, I obtained my Master’s degree in STAPS APA in Montpellier in 2009. My thesis was on a traditional games program aimed at creating connections among independent retired seniors, or how to link the pleasure of rediscovering old games to knowledge of Martinique’s history.

2. From traditional games to bèlè, is this what showed you the way?

When I came back to Martinique in 2009, I had the desire to know my history and culture, and that’s where I discovered Danmyé (a rhythmic wrestling brought by African ancestors to Martinique). Danmyé involves two wrestlers or majò qui mesurent leur force et leur agilité au son d’une musique de tambour bèlè, tibwa et chant responsorial. J’ai commencé aussi à travailler à Coeur et Santé en tant qu’enseignant en activité physique adaptée EAPA, c’est une association qui propose différentes activités dont le but est de travailler le capital santé et prévenir les maladies cardiovasculaires et leurs facteurs de risques en faisant de la marche active, course à pied, cardio, fitness, randonnées et des jeux sportifs.

3. How did you transition from Danmyé and bèlè to Fitness Bèlè ?

After experiencing bèlè with the cultural association Sakitanou and talking with the elders about the importance of transmission, I also exchanged with different cultural associations. I wanted to share the energy of Fitness Bèlè and integrate it into a physical activity. I became interested in posture during steps and the types of injuries that dancers can sustain without proper preparation. My goal was to create a tool for preserving autonomy for seniors while reconciling them with the bèlè culture, which is sometimes criticized or not well-known. Fitness Bèlè (a registered trademark) is involved in the healthcare journey of seniors as part of regular adapted physical activity. The young audience, athletes, and any other person have their program adapted to their abilities and goals.

4. And what about social media? I saw that you have been offering Fitness Bèlè workshops on social media since the first lockdown in 2020.

It was thanks to the director of the Martiniquais Institute of Sport, Grégory Euphrosine, who proposed the concept of Sport Bô Kay, and Gino Fidélin, a coach sensitive to the liannaj between sports professionals, that the Fitness Bèlè practice in videoconferencing was amplified, even though Fitness Bèlè was already developing. This allowed the concept to take on a digital dimension and reach people in New Caledonia, Washington France, Guyana, etc. The goal was obviously to encourage people to practice a physical activity despite the restrictions related to the health crisis.

5. What are your plans for the future ?

My plans include preparing my thesis on seniors and a partnership with the town of Ducos to implement regular physical activities related to culture. I also have the objective of linking with Guinea through the cultural association Mi la vi, which has carried out a migannaj with Guinea Conakry as part of a musical project.

6. Any last words for us ?

Mi la vi la vie bel (Life is beautiful).

For more information, do not hesitate to contact Youry Rotin by email at youry.rotin@gmail.com or visit the website https://fitnessbele.com/collections/fitness-bele-digital

To learn about the history of bèlè: https://www.lamaisondubele.fr/

If you want to practice bèlè, there are many cultural associations, and here are a few that I have selected:

https://www.facebook.com/SakitanouWapa (The Sakitanou association organizes bèlè workshops on Saturdays at the Domaine de Tivoli) https://www.am4.fr/ (The AM4 association brings together six associative schools of Kalennda-bèlè dance; the Danmyé school created in 1983 gave birth to four schools (lékol bòkannal, lékol lonè vié neg, lékol lisid, lékol jenn manmay)) https://www.facebook.com/beleanwout/ (The Bèlé an wout association, created in 2019, perpetuates the tradition, notably in a modern way with beach bèlè)

Between tradition and modernity, bèlè remains the soul of our Martinican culture. So don’t wait any longer to get started! Zip Zap Wabap!