Kelly Arbey, Mae Levy and Hawa Tounkara were the three nominees from the France squad for the accolade in this brand-new U20s competition, and it was the 20-year-old Tounkara who took the trophy.
“I voted for another girl. For me, it was [number 8] Marie Morland, but she wasn't one of the three,” said Hawa. “I thought her carries and everything she did in the three games were exceptional. And she'll still be here next year; she's a 2005 player.”
Tounkara wasn't expecting to receive the award for her final appearance at an U20 tournament with France, as she is now moving up to the 'big girls' category.
“I was very happy and surprised,” she admits. Surprised because she felt she had not been at 100 per cent in the three matches played in Parma from 4 to 14 July, in which France scored 196 points, including 31 tries (more than any other nation).
Hawa contributed three tries and a try assist, four conversions and 241.7 metres in 23 carries, including a line break and three offloads (16 passes in total).
“I felt good in my first game against Wales, but in the other games, against Scotland and England, it was more complicated because the other girls were watching me, and I couldn't really show what I wanted to do. I did it, but not the way I wanted to,” she said.
With that now-familiar smile on her face, she ran through 21 rucks in under three seconds, beat seven defenders, made 28 tackles with a 93% success rate... and conceded just one penalty throughout the tournament.
But it wasn't just her sporting achievements that set Tounkara apart from the other players. It's her personality, the positivity she radiates, her friendliness, her generosity to others, her cheerfulness.
She doesn't speak English, but that doesn't stop her from communicating. “If you smile and dance, it's easy,” she smiles, although there's one thing she doesn't like: being the centre of attention. “I've completely missed out on that,” she laughs.
Following the 2024 Guinness Women's Six Nations, England full-back Ellie Kildunne, who was named Player of the Championship, explained that her hair was her superpower, giving her the strength and confidence to perform.
As for Tounkara, she's not superstitious, but she's had the same haircut every time she's played for France U20 and France have never lost. And before every match, in something approaching a ritual, she systematically adds a new twist.
“But I think my superpower is my smile. Even during the match, when I'm tired, I'll say something to a girl and smile. I'm not too concentrated, but I like it.”
She plans to display this Most Valuable Player award in her bedroom, in a small corner that she'll set up with her jerseys. This colourful trophy, with all six nations represented, will sit next to her only other award from a few years ago, the Young Talent Award from the 17th arrondissement of Paris.
The first awards of a long career at the age of 20?
“I tell myself that I've proved myself here and I have to show more, make more progress, do more. It really pushes me. I already wanted to do more, but this adds something extra,” she says.
Before enjoying a well-deserved three-week break at the end of a season that never ends, Tounkara will be a sparring partner for the French women's rugby sevens team as they prepare for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. She has been allocated places for each day of the women's tournament.
She will then return to sevens with her club Bobigny to take part in the inaugural women's version of the SuperSevens in Pau at the end of August before joining the sevens programme in September.
She is therefore unlikely to be seen in the XV again until next year's tournament. If she is selected, she's sure to come back sharper and faster than ever. And with a few more twists on her head.
