Presented for some time now as one of the greatest hopes of French athletics, Cyrena Samba-Mayela, 21, has, for the first time internationally, confirmed this “label”. Saturday March 19 at the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade. At 21, she won gold in the 60m hurdles.
She won in 7 seconds 78, a new French record, ahead of Bahamian Devynne Charlton (7 seconds 81) and American Gabriele Cunningham (7 seconds 87).
First passed through gymnastics and figure skating, the native of Champigny-sur-Marne had revealed herself in athletics by becoming vice-world champion among the cadets in 2017 (over 100 m hurdles). Champion of France in 2020 (over 60 m hurdles indoors, then over 100 m hurdles outdoors), she then won a silver medal at the European U23 Championships in 2021
Its success on Saturday offers a first podium for the French team since the start of the World Indoor Championships on Friday. It also brings a small glimmer of hope to a discipline in the midst of a crisis in France and which has been accumulating poor results for two years: two medals at the Doha Worlds in 2019, a medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
Cyrena Samba-Mayela had not been able to participate fully in these Olympics: she had been forced to declare a forfeit before the series due to severe pain in her left hamstring.
“I think I have passed a course”, she said at the end of her race, while saying she wanted ” continue on the same basis and hope for even greater things”. His program? “I have to continue like this, to enjoy my life, to work even harder”.