Tokyo (AFP)

Vincent Luis has an appointment with history: the double world champion is one of the big favorites of the Olympic triathlon on Monday in Tokyo where he will try to offer France its first medal at the Olympics in this discipline.

Five years after the disillusionment of Rio (7th), the hour of consecration may have sounded for the native of Vesoul, one of the main protagonists of the world circuit (WTS) for six seasons.

A victory would allow the Frenchman, who is taking part in the Games for the third time, to complete his rich collection, after two national titles (2013, 2018) and a European crown in sprint (2016), and to complete his transformation from 2018. .

This convict of training, capable of swallowing 30 km of swimming, 500 km of cycling and 100 km of running in one week, has seen his career take a decisive turn since his arrival in the stable of Canadian Joël Filliol , two years after its Brazilian failure.

Surrounded by the best specialists on the planet, Luis, now based in Girona (Spain), has taken on another dimension and is only waiting for gold at the Olympics to permanently establish his dominance in international triathlon.

After a faultless event in 2020 (4 successes in 4 races contested), the 32-year-old Frenchman focused entirely this year on the great Olympic event, only taking part in one WTS event, in Yokohama in May. (6th), and displays great serenity before the deadline.

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"I am obviously eagerly awaited given my record but I am really confident, he told AFP. I had a good winter, good sessions and I'm in good shape. Triathlon is a sport where a lot of people are involved. things can happen physically or mechanically, you have to go with the maximum number of cards in hand and I think that I have quite a few with the hours of training that I have just accumulated, even if being a favorite does not guarantee not a medal. With the experience that I have acquired, I try to tell myself that it will be a triathlon like any other. We must not put unnecessary pressure on ourselves. "

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In the absence of the double Olympic title holder Alistair Brownlee, injured, a boulevard is offered to the French, who will still have to be wary of the younger brother of the Briton, Jonathan, bronze medalist in 2012 and silver in 2016, the Norwegian Kristian Blummenfelt, winner in quick succession this year of two WTS stages in Yokohama and then in Lisbon, and the two Spaniards Mario Mola and Javier Gomez.

The main unknown lies in the management of the heat and humidity in the Japanese capital even if the organizers had the good taste to schedule the start of the race at 6.30 am.

A problem that does not seem to worry Vincent Luis unduly, used to operating in scorching temperatures in his Catalan lair.

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“A lot of people focused on the heat and forgot to train,” he explains. “You see a lot of them locking themselves in a sauna or steam room for hours, they hurt themselves more than good. and they will probably regret it. I chose to have a methodical approach by calling on several scientists so as not to do anything stupid. I did altitude and heat tests on my way to Font-Romeu. We also applied what we were advised with hot baths or workouts in the middle of the day. "

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Entirely focused on his personal quest, Luis even comes to minimize a possible victory on July 31 in the mixed relay, novelty of these Olympics and exercise in which the Blues excel, triple world champions in the specialty.

"If I do not do an individual medal but in relay, it will not save my Games, he says frankly. It reassures the federations to bring back a medal in relay but it is not the one I want it. more."

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