Tokyo (AFP)
Basketball, handball, volleyball: the French collective sports teams can offer France a last fiery weekend on Thursday if they qualify for their respective finals at the Tokyo Olympics.
For the moment, men and women are received 5 out of 5: the men's volleyball team, and the French men's and women's handball and basketball teams have all qualified for the semi-finals of the Olympic Games.
Before the girls on Friday, the boys lead the way on Thursday, with France-Egypt in handball (10 a.m. in France, 5 p.m. local), France-Slovenia in basketball (1 p.m. in France, 8 p.m. local) and France-Argentina in volleyball (2 p.m. in France, 9 p.m. local).
To defeat Egypt and bring their hope of reconquest to life, the French handball players will need the Vincent Gérard version 2017, a goalkeeper then at the top of his game who had brought them to their last major title to date.
For basketball players, the danger is called Luka Doncic.
The Slovenian prodigy is the player who generates the most superlatives since the start of the competition, described as "the best in the world" by the coach of Argentina Sergio Hernandez, as stunned as he admired after his 48 points planted against the Albiceleste last week.
Finally, after the feat against Poland in the quarterfinals, the French volleyball players have a revenge to take against Argentina, which had hurt them so badly by leaving them for almost eliminated a week ago.
- Relocation to Sapporo -
Thursday, athletics also relocates with the 20 km women's walk, the first of the events organized in Sapporo, on the island of Hokkaido, more than 1000 km from Tokyo, in northern Japan.
Initially planned for Tokyo, the walking and marathon events have been moved there in order to limit the effects of the high temperatures which overwhelm athletes even more on these endurance events.
At the Olympic stadium, Kevin Mayer will continue his work of Hercules in the decathlon, despite his back problems.
He started the day quite well with the 6th event, the 110m hurdles (13.90).
French Kevin Mayer during the 110m hurdles decathlon at the Tokyo Olympics on August 5, 2020 Ina FASSBENDER AFP
He is in 4th provisional place, before the discus, the pole vault - both in the morning - the javelin, and the 1500 m - in the evening.
The standings are currently dominated by Canadian Damian Warner.
Five other finals are on the program at the Olympic Stadium this Thursday, with the men's triple jump, the men's weight, the 110 m hurdles, the women's pole vault and the men's 400 m.
On the French side, the first highlight will take place at 11:55 am local time (4:55 am in France), with the duo Pascal Martinot-Lagarde and Aurel Manga in the 110m hurdles final.
For the rest, this 13th day of competition will offer the opportunity to admire the keirin in track cycling, a very popular discipline in Japan.
It will also be the day that climbing will award its first Olympic title, while modern pentathlon begins, with the fencing events.
With Marie Oteiza, Élodie Clouvel, Valentin Belaud and Valentin Prades, the modern French pentathlon has a quarter of aces up its sleeve to try to get the first French Olympic title in the discipline.
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