Thomas NABAIS, elite athlete and student in Cultural Project Management

Thomas NABAIS took his first steps on the ice at age 8 and began a dual sports-and-academics program in middle school. In 2015, he met Marie DUPAYAGE, a skater from Isère of the same age, with whom he would begin a career as a pair in ice dancing. They spent their entire career training at the Villard-de-Lans training center in the Vercors.
Alongside his partner, Thomas joined the French Junior National Team in 2016, competed in several Junior Grand Prix events, and was crowned French champion in the category in 2021.

At the same time, Thomas is continuing his dual degree program and has begun a bachelor’s degree in Applied Humanities at the University of Grenoble Alpes (UGA), which he will complete over five years thanks to UGA’s Inter’Val program, which allows athletes to combine sports and academics. In 2023, he will enroll at Sciences Po Grenoble–UGA in the fourth year of the Cultural Project Management track, which he considers the perfect blend of his academic studies and his artistic and athletic pursuits.

In January of that same year, 2023, Marie and Thomas won the World University Championships title in Lake Placid (NY, United States), the ultimate symbol of this dual endeavor. They also competed in the World Championships and several ISU Grand Prix events, won several international medals, and finished 12th at the 2024 European Championships.

His status as a high-level student-athlete thus allowed Thomas to continue his athletic career without compromising his academic path, enabling him to complete his studies over an extended period and gain his first professional experience in the cultural sector. 

Now that he has recently “retired” from sports, he is preparing to complete his studies and embark on a professional career in the cultural sector, bringing with him a unique set of experiences and a distinctive background.

© Gawarkiewicz