last big meeting before the Paris Olympics for the tricolor clan

2023-08-18 14:47:48

From August 19 to 27, the best athletes on the planet gather in Budapest (Hungary) for the World Championships in Athletics. Seventy-eight French people have been selected by the French Athletics Federation (FFA), which is hoping for a better result than last year with only one medal, Kévin Mayer’s gold in the decathlon.

Published on: 08/18/2023 – 14:47Modified on: 08/18/2023 – 14:49

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One year ago, Kevin Mayer was the savior of the French athletics team with world gold in the decathlon. It took until the last day of competition in Eugene in the United States to see the French clan regain some semblance of a smile.

For these Worlds in Hungary, the FFA has considerably increased the number of athletes – 56 for the individual events. The number of athletes making up the French delegation has increased to 78. More than 55% of the Blues have already experienced the joys of the outdoor world championships: 43 out of 78. Among them, three former medalists: Kevin Mayer (2017 and 2022), Mélina Robert-Michon (2013 and 2017) and Alexandra Tavernier (2015).

Last summer, only 28 tricolor athletes were selected individually, 56 in total. One year from Paris-2024, we wanted to give all athletes able to express themselves on the international stage the opportunity to confront the world elite. Our ambition is that no athlete will arrive unselected at the Olympic Games next year. ”, advances the director of high performance Romain Barras, in a press release. For nine days, the French athletes will pace the track of the Budapest stadium, with in the corner of the head the Stade de France of Saint-Denis, host of athletics at the 2024 Olympics in less than a year.

Pascal Martinot-Lagarde and Renaud Lavillenie stay at home

In Budapest, France will have to do without its pillars Pascal Martinot-Lagarde and Renaud Lavillenie. For the past ten years, both have been part of the sure values ​​of the France team. Renaud Lavillenie (36), 2012 Olympic pole vault champion and former world record holder, whose selection was won despite a difficult season, chose to give up, the fault of “ Return of hamstring tendon pain “. He even suffers from a partial rupture “And will be operated in September, he announced Thursday, August 17. This is the first time since 2008 that Lavillenie will miss the big international summer meeting.

Pascal Martinot-Lagarde (31), failed to win his ticket on the track in one of the very rare disciplines of French athletics where the density means that there are more qualifying places than open qualifying places. ” It’s been ten years that you see me with the jersey of the France team and there, I will be at home on the sofahe lamented at the end of July. I have to tell myself that it’s a chance and that I will come back stronger next year. “Operated for a herniated disc at the beginning of the year, the hammer thrower Quentin Bigot is also absent.

In the 100m sprint event, always eagerly awaited, only Mouhamadou Fall, thanks to a repechage, will represent France. Ryan Zézé will line up in the individual men’s 200 meters.

For the first time since 2007 for men, neither Jimmy Vicaut nor Christophe Lemaître are selected to participate a minima to the 4×100 relay. Among women, at the time of celebrating the anniversary of the title in relay of the golden generation of 2003 in Paris (Girard, Hurtis, Félix, Arron), no tricolor athlete is able for the moment to take up the torch.

So remains the stainless Kévin Mayer. At 31, he could put his name in the decathlon pantheon with a third crown. Only two athletes have risen to the top of the hierarchy at three world championships: Dan O’Brien (USA) and Tomas Dvorak (Czech Republic). It was in the 90s.