‘The important thing is not to win, but to participate’ reads the translation of this traditional pétanque medal, awarded to the player who loses 13-0. Pétanque is a specific variant of boules sports, and specific to the variant is Fanny, the saint of the game. The origin of Fanny is unclear, but if you should be so unfortunate to lose to this extent, you’d be expected to kiss the bare bottom of Fanny out of shame. One origin suggests Fanny was a waitress working in a café that overlooked the boulodrome in La Ciotat where pétanque originated.
‘The important thing is not to win, but to participate’ reads the translation of this traditional pétanque medal, awarded to the player who loses 13-0. Pétanque is a specific variant of boules sports, and specific to the variant is Fanny, the saint of the game. The origin of Fanny is unclear, but if you should be so unfortunate to lose to this extent, you’d be expected to kiss the bare bottom of Fanny out of shame. One origin suggests Fanny was a waitress working in a café that overlooked the boulodrome in La Ciotat where pétanque originated.