Martin Lange, edited by Gauthier Delomez / Photo credits: Anne-Christine POUJOULAT / AFP
modified to
07:56, April 17, 2024
At three meters high, seven divers – four boys and three girls – launch themselves and perform a series of rotations, before landing gracefully in the swimming pool of Insep, the National Institute of Sports, under the gaze of their coach, Clémence Monnery. “For the boys, we are on four and a half turns, quadruple and a half forward,” she informs on the microphone of Europe 1, who was able to attend training of Olympic divers 100 days before the Paris Olympics .
“We are around 5-6 hours of training per day”
Each of these athletes performs 40 dives, and that’s just a small part of their training. “We’ll start with trampoline, a little gymnastics, physical preparation and we’ll finish in the water. It’s twice a day, we’re around 5-6 hours of training per day”, explains Alexis Jandard , vice-world champion in 2022 and now known for his fall during the inauguration of the Olympic aquatic center, under the eyes of Emmanuel Macron. “The objective is to go up, up, up, and be ready at the moment T. But with 100 days to go before the Games, things are rushing,” concedes the diver.
French divers train at Insep.
Photo and video credits: Martin Lange/Europe 1
This is especially the case for his partner in synchronized diving, Jules Bouyer, 21 years old and with a head full of dreams. “The first Games at home were a childhood dream. If someone had told me that I would do the ones in Paris when I was little, I would have been like crazy,” he confides to Europe 1.
A duo of ambitious divers for Paris 2024
The latter also shares his ambition: “If we dive at our best level and continue with this training momentum, there is a chance of getting a medal”.
But for that, there is still a little work according to their coach. “We’re going to the United States next week, we’re not quite 100% ready but we’re going to be. There are things to refine a little. We can’t wait to be there, but we I’m still happy that we’re still 100 days away!”, smiles Clémence Monnery. For Alexis and Jules, the meeting is set for Friday August 2, for the synchronized three-meter final.