Paris (AFP)

"I cried a lot": Clarisse Agbegnenou (-63 kg), who aspired to offer herself Olympic gold at the end of July in Tokyo, was "wiped out" by the postponement of the Olympics-2020 to the summer of 2021 in because of the coronavirus pandemic, she told AFP.

Confined to Reunion Island with the family, the quadruple world judo champion, "turned upside down by being in total blur", learns to manage the uncertainty surrounding the resumption of training and competitions.

Q: How do you live this period of confinement?

A: "I brought some things to be able to train here, rubber bands, some dumbbells ... At the beginning, it was complicated because I had a lack of benchmarks. But since the Games had not yet been postponed, I was motivated. I said to myself: + Come on, we have to continue, it's not over, it's going to be fine +. Then there was the postponement of the Games, and there I was really It was a really, very complicated time for me. "

Q: How did you react when you learned it?

A: "I was really not well. I cried a lot about it, I didn't want to talk. Because I only had one goal in mind, that I trained for four years, that I made sacrifices, that it was hard, long, that there were only a few months left, that it was coming to an end, and no, it was taken away from me and told to continue training. very complicated to tell me that I had to start again for another year. Obviously, I said to myself: + Clarisse, you can see that the situation is impossible, that you cannot make the Games, that nobody can make them, Health comes first. + But it's true that part of me thought we were going to find a solution. But no, this virus is tough, and of course, it was the best choice. "

Q: A month later, did you digest it?

A: "It’s better. With hindsight, I tell myself that it was just impossible to travel and fight in these conditions, and, even for my family and my friends who were going to come to see me, that it was an exhibition "I can see that the situation is serious, horrible. But I think that when the date arrives (where she was to fight, July 28, editor's note), it will give me a little reminder."

Q: Does the fact that you approach the Olympic Games 2020 as a favorite increase frustration?

A: "Yes, because I was really waiting for that to complete my book, to complete this cycle: I only need the Olympic gold medal to be able to say that I have all the titles that an athlete can obtain. I was in a sprint, on my way, fully, and right in the middle, I was told: + Ah no, finally, it's a false start, you have to start all over again. + It's difficult. "

Q: In these conditions, did you relax in terms of physical training?

A: "Not really. I do at least one session a day. I found another desire, another motivation: there are a lot of things that I was not used to working or that I no longer worked for lack of time. I'm not very flexible, so I work my flexibility. I do more yoga, mobility. I try to do things that interest me, and not because I have to do them. "

Q: How do you manage the uncertainty around the resumption of training and competitions?

A: "It is very difficult, especially since I am a very orderly person, I like to plan in advance. It really upset me not to know at all and to be in the dark I learn to be a different person, to live a little more day by day, which is not easy. I learn to be patient in uncertainty too. It is not simple. "

Q: Do you see yourself in the weeks, months to come?

A: "Since I do not know when we are going to resume, I do not project myself. I have never had such a long stop, even because of an injury. I try to maintain my body and have a healthy lifestyle to be in good shape and not have to start from scratch when we start again. "

Q: The postponement to the summer of 2021 shortens the Olympiad leading to Paris-2024. Does this disrupt your organization?

A: "I wanted to take a break (after the Olympics-2020) to recharge my batteries, recharge my energy so that I could start again on the 2024 Olympiad. But since I am taking a break now, I don't know if, after a year to work hard for 2021, I will need it or not. I prefer not even to think about it (...). I will see when I can train, when will start competitions again, how will 2021 go, and after, I will see (...). The Olympiad will pass quickly enough with all that we have experienced. "

Interview by Elodie SOINARD

© 2020 AFP