It was school trips to the skating rink that opened her eyes. Compulsory figures didn’t excite Aurélie, a speed demon who took to the short track in middle school. “Racing, overtaking, feeling the speed, mastering the technique, that really got me going!”

Murielle Audemard, Aurélie Lévêque’s physical education teacher and president of the Club de Glace de l’Amicale Laïque d’Échirolles (CGALE), spotted the young racer’s potential and invited her to join the skating club. “I gave it 100%,” Aurélie recalls. “I was explosive, and I really wanted to shine.”

At the club, she learned technique and—most importantly—how to think on the ice. Watch. Adapt. Anticipate. Execute. Soon she was climbing podiums at the national level. Next came Europe, with competitions in the Netherlands and Italy, two powerhouse nations in a sport still developing in France.

The longer the distances, the more Aurélie Lévêque showed her stuff—500 m, 1,000 m, 1,500 m. At the 2017 European Youth Olympic Winter Festival in Erzurum, her results confirmed her trajectory. At just 17, she left her home in the Isère department to join the national training centre in Font-Romeu, where she discovered what elite-level training truly meant. Her days alternated between classes and twice daily practice sessions, with family visits limited to school holidays.

With her a Baccalauréat in Management Science and Technology in hand, she joined the French national team at age 19. Her childhood idol, Aurélie Monvoisin, was now her teammate. Together, they brought home the European team championship in her first senior competition, before adding a silver medal in the women’s relay in Dordrecht, Netherlands.

“When I think back, those were some crazy years,” admits Lévêque. “But for me, the highlight was qualifying for the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.” As part of a young, newly rebuilt French relay team, Aurélie and her squad sought to punch their ticket to Milan-Cortina in the final qualifying competition in December 2025. “We took control of the race and left the other teams behind,” she explains. “Four years ago, I had no idea I’d be here today. I am incredibly proud. It makes all the sacrifices worth it, including my decision to train in Bormio, Italy, so I’d be at my best.”

Off the ice, the Olympian shares the daily life of a top-level athlete on TikTok “to showcase my sport” while also “speaking my mind, developing my creative side and building confidence”. Aurélie uses the platform to explain the finer points of short track, including how she takes care of her most essential equipment, her €2,500-a-pair custom-made carbon fibre skates.

Even with support from the French national federation, financing a high-level sporting career isn’t easy in a discipline without a professional league in France. When Aurélie was completing her physical at the National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance in Paris ahead of the 2025 season, she learned about the SNCF Athletes programme. 

“I had no idea a professional integration programme like this existed, especially one that adapts to my training and racing schedule. I applied immediately!” she says, beaming.

Following a series of interviews, Aurélie joined the SNCF Athletes programme on 1 January 2026. She signed contract as a ticketing agent at  Villefranche-de-Conflent station, in the Occitanie region of southwest France. 
“This programme doesn’t just give me peace of mind,” she says. “It’s also a great professional opportunity as a 24-year-old entering the job market. SNCF offers so many career paths, I know I have a bright future after short track.”