Marc-André Cratère--nicknamed Marcus--was born in Martinique on 3 February 1973 and became paraplegic in 1995, when he tried to break up a fight. He was 22 years old.

With grit and perseverance, he rebuilt his life, and in 2004 met a fencing master who persuaded him to take up the sport. It appealed to him from the start, and he quickly excelled in it.

Between 2004 and 2012, Marcus won the French national championships ten times, in épée and sabre. Along the way, he also collected a number of international medals, becoming a 6-time European and world champion.

In 2008, while pursuing his elite fencing career, he joined the SNCF Athletes programme as a customer care agent based in Paris. In the summer of 2012 he reached new heights at the Paralympic Games in London, taking the silver medal and putting his disappointing finish at the Beijing Paralympics firmly behind him. In the same year, Marcus was named Chevalier of France’s National Order of Merit in honour of his impressive showing in London.