EXCLUSIVE VOICI

Philippe Croizon is a survivor. In 1994, while repairing the TV antenna on the roof of his house, he was struck by a violent electrical shock. The metalworker was struck by lightning, suffered a heart attack, and was revived by a second shock. At that time, his wife Muriel was expecting their second child. Philippe Croizon spent three months hospitalized at the burn center of the CHU de Tours, where he had to undergo the amputation of all four limbs. After two years of rehabilitation, he regained the ability to walk and drive, before embarking on a new life marked by extraordinary sporting feats.

Why does Philippe Croizon feel he was born at the same time as his second son? His will to live was particularly drawn from his children. Speaking on Bernard Montiel’s show “1 hour with” on RFM, the man who swam across the English Channel recalled a pivotal moment: the birth of his second son. “You have to know that when I came out of the coma, after two months, Gregory, my second son, was born at the same time as me. We now share the same date of birth because it’s a new life starting for me,” he revealed.

Still hospitalized in a sterile room, Philippe Croizon learned of his child’s birth through his father. Then, a family member found the words that gave him the strength to fight. “And then, my father rushed to Châtellerault, took a photo of the baby, went to Tours, put the photo on the sterile glass and said: ‘Your son is born.’ And then, I cried, and that’s when my ex-wife’s uncle arrived and gave me that sentence that brought me back to life, he said: ‘Don’t you think it would be good for you to be there to guide your two sons on the path of life?’ And that’s when the spark, virtual this time, struck, and I woke up and said to myself: okay, I’m going to fight, I’m going to push myself,” he shared.

Who is Philippe Croizon in a relationship with? In 2001, his wife Muriel filed for divorce, a difficult moment for him. A few years later, he found love through a dating app, where he met Suzana Sabino, his current partner. “What impressed me was that the first time we stood next to each other, she took my most injured arm, caressed it, and kissed it. She tamed my body. It’s extremely intense, we are scared,” he revealed to Jordan de Luxe.

Driven by this love and extraordinary will, Philippe Croizon achieved numerous accomplishments: swimming across the English Channel in 2010, diving records, participating in the Dakar Rally, among others. Today, he shares his journey through conferences to convey a message of hope and self-transcendence.