Lille (AFP)

Five years after his silver medal in Rio on K1 200 m (road race), Maxime Beaumont still dreams of winning the supreme title in Tokyo, starting on Wednesday, even if he is now 39 years old and playing his 3rd Olympics.

"It's a little more trying, but the body follows and the envy follows enormously, it's just that I have a few less hair!", Insists the kayaker.

It takes a lot to make Beaumont lose his sleep, a sturdy 1.91 m for 92 kg: neither the one-year postponement of the Games, nor his late qualification for Tokyo succeeded.

"The fact that the Olympics were postponed by one year did not disturb me too much, because I had decided not to end my career with the Olympic Games. I do not want, at the start of my race, to tell myself that it is perhaps my last ", explains to AFP the kayaker of Boulogne-sur-Mer (Pas-de-Calais).

"I feel capable of going for a medal in Tokyo, otherwise I wouldn't go. The idea is to divide by two each time: I was 4th in London in 2012, 2nd in Rio. .and I'll let you calculate for Tokyo! ”he half-jokes.

Beaumont wants to believe that his long experience can help him win another Olympic medal.

- Tendinitis in the left elbow -

"I don't think it's a handicap to be 39 years old. I've done two Olympics, more than ten World Championships, so I have a lot of high-level experience and I know a lot. well my body. But it is certain that at 39 years old my body is a little more fragile, especially in sprint where it is very explosive efforts. But I know myself well so that allows me to take care of it and to do pay attention to everything you need to be ready on D-Day ", he explains.

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Embarrassed by epicondylitis (tendonitis) in the left elbow, Beaumont, who does not suffer too much during the race but rather during weight training, remains confident a few hours before his entry into the running.

"I sailed on the Olympic basin and the sensations are good. Technically, it's coming back well. There are only a few small mechanical adjustments to do," insists the 2015 world champion and 2019 European champion.

Beaumont knows that beyond his personal case, the Games are a unique opportunity to talk about his discipline, rather confidential compared to the canoe-kayak slalom where Tony Estanguet, triple Olympic champion, triumphed (2000, 2004, 2012).

- Until 2024?

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"For a sport like ours, the Olympics are essential because every four years we have an important media window. In sport, it represents the benchmark competition but also in the media because it is there that the general public sees us and discovers the online kayak races, ”he points out.

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"We prepare for four years or more for three times 35 seconds of racing and effort, we have no room for error, every shot counts," he analyzes.

The Boulonnais, who should become a national coach at the end of his career, will continue to paddle in 2022, at the age of 40.

But he does not prevent himself from seeing further: "Paris-2024 makes me dream and there are only three years left, so maybe at 42 years old I would still sprint. If the body follows, the head will follow, because I really want to! As long as I'm enjoying the water, I don't want to stop ... "

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