Audrey Bandiera - French Pétanque Champion | Player Profile

Audrey Bandiera - Quick Facts

A Long Career Across Every Format

Audrey Bandiera's pétanque career began at Saint-Martory in the Haute-Garonne before a move to Saint-Alban, where she won her first French title in 2013 - a women's doublette crown alongside her older sister Céline Bandiera. The sisters had already won a Millau World Tournament triplette title together in 2010, and Audrey added a doublette title at the same tournament in 2012, partnering Agnès Lesaine.

A switch to JC Cournon d'Auvergne in the Puy-de-Dôme brought two more French titles: a women's triplette crown in 2014, alongside Ludivine d'Isidoro and Sylviane Ramos, and a women's doublette title in 2015 with Angélique Colombet - the same year the pair won the Mondial La Marseillaise together with Ludivine d'Isidoro. A further move to Cazères Pétanque Club produced a fourth French title in 2019, winning women's triplette alongside Émilie Vigneres and Cindy Peyrot, after finishing runner-up in doublette (with Vigneres) and mixed doublette (with Rocky Ratqueber) the same season.

Two World Championship Finals in One Tournament

Bandiera's international breakthrough came remarkably early: at just 15 years old, she was part of the French women's triplette squad - alongside Anna Maillard, Angélique Colombet and Marie-Christine Virebayre - that won silver at the 2009 World Championship in Suphanburi, Thailand, losing the final to the host nation. She added further World Championship medals over the following decade: bronze in individual precision shooting (2015), bronze in women's doublette with Colombet (2017), and bronze in women's triplette (2019), partnering Maillard, Sandrine Herlem and Daisy Frigara.

Her most productive World Championship came in 2023, at Cotonou, Benin, where she reached two finals in the same edition. Partnering Nelly Peyré in women's doublette, she lost 13-2 to Thailand's Sunitra Phuangyoo and Nantawan Fueangsanit. Partnering Dylan Rocher in mixed doublette, she reached a second final at the same tournament. Two silver medals from a single World Championship remains the high point of her international career, and it forged the doubles partnership with Peyré that would deliver a national title three years later.

2026: A Fifth French Title, Alongside Nelly Peyré

Now playing for FIP Fréjus in the Var, Bandiera reunited with Nelly Peyré for the 2026 French Women's Doublette Championship at Bergerac on 25-26 July, beating defending champions Nadège Baussian-Protat and Mouna Béji 13-8 in the final, after edging past Anna Maillard and Cindy Peyrot 13-12 in the semi-final. It was a fifth French Championship title for Bandiera individually - and, after the pair's shared World Championship final in Cotonou, their first title won together. Full results are covered in our 2026 French Championships recap.

European and Youth Success

Before her senior titles, Bandiera was a dominant force at Espoirs (under-23) level, winning the European Championship women's triplette title in three consecutive editions - 2013, 2015, and 2016 - across three different partner combinations, including a 2013 squad that featured Anna Maillard. She also won the Confederation Cup triplette title in 2014.

Playing Style

Bandiera plays as a thrower or middle player (tireuse ou milieu), giving her the flexibility to slot into either shooting or mid-game roles depending on her team's needs - a versatility reflected in her results across doublette, triplette, and mixed doublette formats at both national and world level.

Achievements and Honors

• World Championship Silver, Women's Doublette (2023, Cotonou), with Nelly Peyré
• World Championship Silver, Mixed Doublette (2023, Cotonou), with Dylan Rocher
• World Championship Silver, Women's Triplette (2009, Suphanburi), with Anna Maillard, Angélique Colombet and Marie-Christine Virebayre
• World Championship Bronze, Women's Doublette (2017), with Angélique Colombet
• World Championship Bronze, Women's Triplette (2019), with Anna Maillard, Sandrine Herlem and Daisy Frigara
• World Championship Bronze, Individual Precision Shooting (2015)
• French Champion, Women's Doublette (2013, with Céline Bandiera; 2015, with Angélique Colombet; 2026, with Nelly Peyré)
• French Champion, Women's Triplette (2014, with Ludivine d'Isidoro and Sylviane Ramos; 2019, with Émilie Vigneres and Cindy Peyrot)
• French Championship runner-up, Women's Doublette (2018), Mixed Doublette (2019) and Women's Triplette (2021)
• European Champion, Women's Espoirs Triplette (2013, 2015, 2016)
• Mondial La Marseillaise winner (2015), with Ludivine d'Isidoro and Angélique Colombet
• Confederation Cup winner, Triplette (2014)

Legacy

Audrey Bandiera's career spans nearly two decades of French women's pétanque, from a World Championship silver medal at 15 years old to a fifth French title at 31. Her partnership with Nelly Peyré - forged in a losing World Championship final in Benin and turned into a French Championship win three years later - stands as one of the most enduring doubles pairings in the current French national setup, heading into the 2026 World Championship in Khon Kaen, Thailand.