2023-11-11 15:51:27
For what ? “We are emerging from the coronavirus, France has been marked by attacks, yellow vests then riots. With sport, we are in one of the rare moments of national cohesion”, explained sports geopolitics specialist Jean-Baptiste Guégan in our September 8 edition. It was the opening day of the Rugby World Cup, and The cross celebrated the exceptional opportunity for our country represented by a year marked by the hosting of two sporting events of global significance.
Two months and a South African coronation later, we can only agree with this analysis. In a particularly dark current situation, and with the exception of distressing incidents of which French football recently gave an example, sport appears more than ever as a place of refuge for positive emotions, communion, fervor and unit.
The Olympic Games, by their scale – 10,500 athletes expected in Paris, 4,400 for the Paralympics – and their universality, bring this reality to its climax. As the great wheelchair tennis champion Michaël Jérémiasz says in our columns, the Games represent, in a miniature and ephemeral version, “the world in which we would like to live, with respect for differences, for the singularity of each person”.
Of course, the Olympics are not just about sport. We also talk about diplomacy, economy, transport, environment, etc. Of course, the organization of such an event does not go without false notes and without controversies which are already not lacking, from the price of tickets to the participation of Russian athletes through the requisition of student accommodation in Paris. The cross will not ignore these subjects. But through this weekly meeting, it is the preparation of a positive, festive and unifying event that we want to support and enlighten.
——
“Even in “small” disciplines, we make people dream”
Émilie Fer
40 years old, ex-kayakist, gold medalist in kayak slalom in London (2012), vice-president of the Alpes-Maritimes Departmental Olympic and Sports Committee
“The Games are a great celebration of almost all sports and athletes, and being able to participate in them, set foot in the Olympic village, is indeed magical. I like the term. I met her twice, in 2008 and in 2012, and each time it was a marvel. This atmosphere, in a sport like ours, which is quite confidential, is truly exceptional. We must then be able to go beyond, and succeed in managing this theater, not letting ourselves be consumed by the event.
For my first Games, I asked more experienced champions how to do it, notably Tony Estanguet, who today presides over the destiny of Paris 2024. He only gave me one piece of advice: “Enjoy! » No doubt he did not want, in a sense, to reveal too much of this magic specific to the Games. It is not only during the Games. For me, it is also in the preparation, the months preceding the competition. We also only experience the selection phase once. It’s intense. We are the chosen one, we dream a little and we make those around us dream.
The magic of the Games is also to be suddenly, especially in our “small” disciplines, watched by a lot of people. We realize that we make young people dream in our sport and beyond. I noticed it after my gold medal. I took six months to respond to the many requests, and make the most of it before resuming training.
For 2024, I will experience things from the outside, and I am curious to see what France can offer for this event. In my sport, many athletes like to come and compete in France for its art of living and its gastronomy. I hope they will remember that France had magnificent Games that resembled them. »
——
“The Games help people accept difference”
Michael Jeremiah
42 years old, former world number 1 in wheelchair tennis, doubles gold medalist at the Beijing Paralympic Games (2008)
“The magic of the Games is this universal desire to come together around the values of sport such as fraternity, performance, challenge, solidarity. I know that it is ephemeral and fragile, but it is really the world in which we would like to live, with respect for differences, for the singularity of each person.
It shocked me when I participated in my first Paralympic Games in Athens in 2004. We were in the middle of the second Gulf War, and in the canteen of the athletes’ village, to see Iranians, Iraqis and Americans Side by Side really touched me. This allowed us to say: there is hope.
But the magic of the Games is also seeing that if they are successful, they can truly transform a society. I know very well that the Olympic Games, once they have passed, often don’t change much. But as far as the Paralympics are concerned, they can be the source of an acceleration of access to the rights of people with disabilities.
In any case, this is the impact they had and which I measure in London, where I live. Many neighborhoods were rehabilitated, and more than a million jobs were created for people with disabilities after the 2012 Games. This is a lasting legacy.
I am also committed to Paris 2024 with this specific goal: that these Games help to accept difference in France and that everyone finally considers disabled people as citizens with full rights.
I am not naive, but I am convinced, to achieve this objective, that it is better to have the Games than not to have them. Because since 2004, if I have been able to observe a real evolution, it is really too slow. I see it with the people I support within my association Like the others: they experience almost the same difficulties as twenty years ago. And it’s still unacceptable. »
——
“An Olympic medal remains in history”
Thierry Omeyer
Former goalkeeper of the French handball team, gold medal in Beijing (2008) and London (2012) and silver in Rio (2016)
“My story with the Games began with frustration. I was not selected to compete in the Sydney Olympics in 2000, despite the preparation in which I had participated. So, when I arrived in Athens, four years later, I wanted to take advantage.
I looked everywhere! I had the eyes of a child. You have to try not to get caught up in the immensity of this event and to be focused on the competition, while accepting that you have stars in your eyes. While walking in the Olympic village or going out to eat, we come across champions that we are used to seeing on television, it’s quite incredible. The particularity of my team sport is being able to experience it with my teammates. We can benefit from the experience of others so as not to get lost in this euphoric atmosphere.
Since I was little, every time I saw an athlete win a medal, I found it very powerful. I was pleasantly surprised to see that once at the Games, this feeling was shared by all the members of the delegation. We find ourselves supporting our compatriots even in disciplines that are a little foreign to us. There is an osmosis in the French camp which is quite unique. I felt it in Beijing (2008), when we played in the final which was the very last event of the Games. All the French athletes still present came to support us.
Despite all this magic around, we were able to win gold in Beijing and London. It’s hard to explain, but Olympic gold is above all else. For two weeks the whole planet is focused on sport. An Olympic medal remains in history, no matter your discipline. When that happens, you look back on yourself, you visualize the stages you went through. I had the chance to experience four Olympics and I rediscovered this magic each time. »
——
“Magic had taken precedence over the sporting side”
Muriel Hurtis
44 years old, former sprint athlete, bronze medal in the 4 x 100 meter relay in Athens (2004)
“The Games have grown so big over time that they have undoubtedly become the ultimate goal for us athletes. It’s a unique moment. We meet all nationalities, all sports, these are incredible encounters. Without realizing it, we come across great champions… Really, the term “magic” is not overused.
During my first Games, I really wanted to discover everything. I was amazed, I looked everywhere around me. I wanted to experience these Games 100%. The other side of the coin, undoubtedly, is that I got out of my competition a little. My personal results were disappointing, but I have no regrets. Magic had taken precedence over the sporting side.
For the record, I gained a lot of weight during the fortnight, with the restaurant open 24 hours a day! That didn’t stop me from getting this bronze medal in the relay. It’s a different flavor than those obtained in world or European championships. Even if we face the same people. I experienced the moment with the eyes of a little girl. Subsequently, I had the chance to compete in two other Olympics (2008 and 2012). I found the same atmosphere there, although with experience, I favored the sporting side more. The results weren’t there but I had no regrets.
Athlete or simple spectator, it is essential to let yourself be invaded by the magic of the Games. I want to say to those who are still reluctant, that this event brings so much to the country that receives it, that we must not let ourselves be caught up in the criticism. If this can inspire vocations, bring people who had abandoned it back to sport, and create a real legacy, then we must welcome the Paris Games as they should. »
——
More than 10,000 athletes expected in Paris
In 2024, 10,500 athletes will participate in the Paris Olympic Games, and 4,400 in the Paralympic Games.
The first Olympic selection commissions of the French National Olympic and Sports Committee (Cnosf) will begin in May and continue in June and July. On July 5, the body will announce the list of French athletes present in all collective disciplines. As host country, France has automatically allocated quotas for all team sports.
In several individual sports moreover, France can hope to obtain more places between now and then, through qualifying courses which extend until the start of summer 2024, a few weeks before the Games.
No French athlete can no longer be registered after July 8, 2024. It is on this date that the entire French delegation will be revealed.
#Olympic #Games #celebration #horizon