"He was a great guy": a great figure in sports journalism, Pierre-Louis Castelli from Nice, has died

There are silences that are heavier than others. That of Pierre-Louis Castelli, a key figure in sports journalism in Nice, is painful. The 72-year-old man died after a long illness and leaves behind orphaned ears because "Casto," as he was kindly nicknamed by his family, was the voice of sports at Radio France for more than 30 years, he also headed the reporting service of France Inter .

Jacques Vendroux: "I was fire, he was wisdom"

A sailing enthusiast, he had worked in the Vendée Globe organization, an environment that fascinated him. Amazed by these adventurers of the impossible, just like the mountaineers, he had participated in a transatlantic crossing with Roland Jourdain upon returning from a Route du Rhum. A mark of confidence from the sailor in the man who made sailing accessible. Listeners will not forget his way of interacting with the Vendée Globe sailors during the "vacations" organized between the adventurers and the Parisian command center. A simple, open-minded conversation that allowed one to gauge all of Castelli's humanity and desire to share his knowledge.

Born in Nice, where he studied, it was on the Côte d'Azur that he ended his brilliant career, at the head of France Bleu Azur but also as a teacher at the Nice journalism school.

"He was a great guy," explains Philippe Camps, former head of the sports department at Nice-Matin and an unforgettable writer. "A true pro, competent. And he was a handsome, laid-back guy, he had everything going for him, including that incredible voice for radio."

An adventurer and a lover of cycling and football, he notably commentated on the French football team's victory in 1998 on Radio France with his long-time friend Jacques Vendroux. "I commentated on all the great moments of football with him," Vendroux recalls, now on Europe 1. " He was the best, I was him, he was me, we understood each other without a word. He hated being talked about, I was fire, he was wisdom. I have never found such osmosis with another on the airwaves." For 20 years, the two men commentated on football, including the 98 World Cup final, the apotheosis of a career. "The afternoon of the match, I called Alain Delon and asked him if he would agree to come with us to the press box for the last five minutes if we were leading three to zero, he gave me his word of honor, Vendroux remembers. And when I saw him arrive at our level in the 85th minute, Casto looked at me, all red, and asked me: "But is that Delon? Is he going to come and commentate the end of the match with us?"

In the corridors of the Maison de la Radio, Castelli gets closer to another vocal signature well-known to sports listeners, Fabrice Abgrall. " I discovered the sports department in 1992 and there were only sacred monsters including Pierre-Louis, rewinds Abgrall. He always paid attention to the newcomers, he was someone generous, deeply kind, with an almost morbid humility. When we went on a report with him, we were safe, continues the journalist. He had a crazy sense of improvisation, he could comment on everything. He was just a good guy and we all owe him something at Radio France." Pierre-Louis Castelli should be buried in the family vault located in Cap-d'Ail. His funeral will take place Tuesday, ^July 1 at 11 a.m. at the Athanée in Nice without flowers. His family and friends are asking for donations to the Pitié Salpêtrière University Hospital Association in Paris. Burial will take place in the strictest family privacy.