Allauch (France) (AFP)

European and world junior champion, multiple champion of France, Mathilde Lamolle is at 23 one of the greatest talents in French sport shooting and already has experience of the Olympic Games after having participated in Rio in 2016.

Until the Paris Olympics in 2024, passing - except rebounding - by those of Tokyo this summer, the young Aubagnaise shooter tells her story to AFP.

In this first episode, the impact of the health situation and the difficulties of a preparation without the benchmarks of the competition.

"I obtained my qualification for the Olympics in September 2019, when we were still quiet. During the first confinement, in March, when we thought that there would still be the Games in 2020, I was training at home, with my pistol, blank, empty, just to climb up my arms. And physically I tinkered with so that I could still be ready for the Games. Then there was the postponement and inevitably a decrease in motivation. We didn't know Too much where we were going, it was a bit difficult to manage. For the second lockdown in November, the high-level athletes could continue to train and that kept them up to date. "

"The hardest part is that very few competitions are maintained. The last one I participated in was the Military World Games in October 2019, it's been a long time. Today I may go to the Games without any international competition. For a competitor, it is frustrating and difficult to manage. We even organized tests on (the videoconferencing application) Zoom, with shooters from other countries, to do scenarios. Well, it's not really the same (laughs). All in all, there is a lack of competition to be able to assess yourself, to boost yourself in training, to know what things to work on because you haven't been fairly efficient. And for the confrontation with the best in the world, see where we stand in relation to them. "

- Submerged in Rio -

"But in the end, I feel pretty good. Despite the conditions, I manage to maintain a good state of mind, a lot of motivation and determination and a good level of training. In itself, these difficulties also allow to work better technically, to take more time. The first confinement for example was ultimately rather positive for me. It allowed me to see my practice differently, to work on other points, with more effective training strategies , to take a step back. And I think that made me progress, with a different state of mind, more positive, more combative. "

"I participated in the Rio Games in 2016 and I consider that since that date I have been preparing for Tokyo. In Rio, I was 19 years old, I was the youngest of the French delegation in shooting and I was a little overwhelmed by my emotions. I worked according to that, the weaknesses identified in Rio. And since then I really evolved, technically, mentally and physically. great progress precisely because today, I know what to expect. I have more chances to be efficient and performant on D-Day. "

"The situation is special but I follow my path, I set myself goals for each training session. We cannot project ourselves, we do it day by day, training by training. But I tell myself that it is the same for the others and that it is there and now that it is played. What will make the difference is how we train here and now. I have to be the best in these conditions. "

Interview by Stanislas TOUCHOT

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