Denis Pettiaux (1956) is a Belgian

acrobat Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most often performed in acro ...

and former

referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other titl ...

of the

EBU The European Broadcasting Union (EBU; french: Union européenne de radio-télévision, links=no, UER) is an alliance of public service media organisations whose countries are within the European Broadcasting Area or who are members of the Co ...

production

Jeux Sans Frontières ''Jeux sans frontières'' (; "Games Without Borders" in French) is a Europe-wide television game show, based on the French programme ''Intervilles'' which was first broadcast in 1962. In was broadcast from 1965 to 1999 under the auspices of the ...

. His first contact with Jeux Sans Frontières was in 1981 when he participates in an episode in the French town of

Annecy Annecy ( , ; frp, Èneci or ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France. It lies on the northern tip of Lake Annecy, south of Geneva, Switzerland. Nicknamed ...

. The Belgian team played Pettiaux on a tightrope walking game and also played their Joker on it, which gives extra points. Pettiaux performed very well on this game, and this helps the Belgian team to win that night. They also qualify for the final, but they have no success, as they finish rock bottom there. Also in 1988 he participated for a Belgian team and once again his team picks the win. In 1990 Pettiaux became the international referee of Jeux Sans Frontières. First with Bernhard Galley, since 1992 on his own. He uses his talent for acrobatics in demonstrations for certain games. In 1996 he can demonstrate a game with a unicycle. His famous quote "Attention, prêts?" announced the start of a game, before he blows his whistle. He is the referee until the end in 1999, a total of 122 episodes long. After the end of Jeux Sans Frontières Pettiaux returns to his original job as a teacher for people with disabilities.

References

Biography of Denis Pettiaux at JSFnet.fr
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pettiaux, Denis Living people 1956 births