/ 
Hello, can you introduce yourself to Fishing.news readers?
Hello, our team for the MFC2 will consist of Claude Laisné and myself, Thierry Nguyen, who will be representing the Shimano brand in this competition.
We also work with the Mercury brand, which equips our boats.
We both live in the Eure-et-Loir region (28), and have been fishing together for a number of years, both for pleasure and in competition.
We fish the Loir, the Seine and the various bodies of water in our region, and are respectively 54 and 62 years old, so we'll be an "experienced" team.
If Claude is more of a pike fisherman, I consider myself more of a perch and pike-perch fisherman...
For this event, we'll have a magnificent Ranger Z520 with a fabulous 250 hp V8 Pro XS, but given the 20 km/h speed limit, we may opt for a smaller craft such as a Tracker 1648 and a 40 hp Mercury (weather permitting).
Can you tell us about your beginnings in fishing?
We've both had the good fortune to start fishing, from our earliest childhood in the family context.
Whether it was around the family pond or pedaling behind grandfather to tease gudgeon with their feet in the water, perch with worms, chub with grasshoppers... We were the happiest!
When, how and why did you decide to take up competitive fishing?
Claude, along with his son Mathieu, has taken part in the GN CARLA boat circuits in the northern zone since 2012, with some great dates in the IDF, and a northern zone title in 2015, and second place in 2016.
His motivation during competitions is always to discover new horizons, and to meet new people to exchange ideas about fishing.
As far as I'm concerned, in 2004, when I was fishing exclusively at sea, I took part in the first Open Bar des Abers, the very first no-kill lure fishing competition in the Abers region of Brittany.
This was the start of a great adventure for the Open Bar, which then proliferated all along the coast, creating a kind of championship.
The craze has been going strong for years, and just like at MFC, you couldn't miss the opening of registrations or you'd be put on the waiting list...
I will have taken part in most of these Open Bars as part of a team... We won the first edition of the "Open Bar Championship" in the "non-sponsored" category
Always a great atmosphere, with lots of meetings and exchanges... That's what sailors are like.
Then in 2015/2016 after much more freshwater practice, I launched into the GN Carla, FFPS circuits, first in float tube, then mostly street fishing.
In 2018, Claude and I tried our hand at boating together on the Challenge Henri Hermet, a beautiful and very friendly circuit. We finished in the top 10 for our first participation in this circuit.
Then in 2022, a very big moment for me, as I had the privilege of taking part in Perch Pro 9 in Shimano colors.
This is the high-profile version of the fishing competition, a real show where the tension is palpable. I really felt the enthusiasm of many fans of this competition, it was exceptional!
These competitions have really enabled me to progress in my practice, as it's by working alongside competitors that you make progress in approaches, strategies...
I also like the fact that I find myself in unfamiliar areas, and have to question myself in order to find strategies for successful fishing.
What do you think of competition in general?
As mentioned above, competition is a very good school for progress.
The encounters and exchanges are often rich in lessons learned, especially on multi-round circuits where the same teams can be found.
Today, under the impetus of Mercury and the MFC, we can sense a real craze among anglers for this competition format, as evidenced by the speed with which the 100 registrations have been recorded.
With the support of the FFPS, Mercury was able to make the competition official, while adding a "show" aspect to it, in order to publicize our sport and the brands supporting the event.
What we can hope for in the future is that it will take place on a multi-round circuit with good visibility.
What does taking part in the second Mercury Fishing Cup mean to you?
Having been unable to attend the first edition together, we didn't want to miss this one.
Our main ambitions are to find ourselves in the middle of 100 teams, and to succeed in finding a good fishing strategy in an unknown area, while giving a good image of sport fishing and the Shimano brand.
How are you going to prepare for this edition?
We'll get in touch with the area in pre-fishing, and try to form one or more opinions on the fishing we could do.
As we're not big bait specialists, and don't have the "live" touch, we'll be mixing scratch and linear techniques to get a wide range of prospects.
Here, G.Loomis rods combined with Shimano Vanquish will be a plus.
A few crankbaits and, above all, numerous soft lures of all kinds will make up the bulk of our boxes, as we opt for finesse.
Any advice for anglers hoping to take part in the Mercury Fishing Cup one day?
Every time I've embarked on this kind of challenge without knowing where I was putting my lures, I've always found it extremely satisfying, thanks to the experience gained, the stimulation, the atmosphere...
So I'd say, if you're up for the adventure... Go for it!
