LE PARISIEN. The National Gendarmerie is in mourning. On Saturday, via Twitter and Facebook, it paid a final tribute to Benjamin Delhaye. The 36-year-old gendarme died during a sporting event in Amiens (Somme) last Thursday morning. Stationed at the Attichy brigade in the Oise, he collapsed whilst attempting to run 3,000 metres in 15 minutes. It is thought he may have suffered a sudden illness. “There was no indication that this would happen; there were no warning signs. This death is sudden and has saddened us all,” said Colonel François Brémand, commander of the Oise Gendarmerie Group.
Benjamin Delhaye, originally from the Nord region, had joined the gendarmerie relatively late in life. A forklift operator in his previous civilian job, he had joined the gendarmerie three years ago. In order to secure a permanent post and become a career officer, he was preparing for his CAT (Certificate of Technical Aptitude) exams, which are administered by the regional gendarmerie headquarters.
“It includes shooting tests, written exams and physical tests such as running, sit-ups, pull-ups and push-ups, as well as more specialised practical tests to be passed, such as combat or handcuffing,” explains one of his superiors, Lieutenant Thierry Bigot of the Compiègne Company.