Looking back, what do you have left of your Worlds in Paris (from July 8 to 17)? Timothée Adolphe: Always this somewhat mixed feeling between satisfaction and frustration. I was going there to defend my title in the 400 and I was aiming better in the 100m, but on the other hand, I still won two bronze medals (in the 100 and 400m) in a complicated context for me, after a white season and a change of coach. I also had my guide on 100m who had a serious accident and I had to train another one in six months. And to top it off, I got injured twice, in April and June. Each time it was nothing serious but it disturbs a preparation, inevitably. So my season has been hectic and finishing it on two world podiums, that has value. It gives me a lot of information to know where to focus my work between now and the Games in a year.
Your two medals have done good to a French team that is otherwise suffering… It’s true that it has been a complicated campaign for the French team, with only four medals, which is even less than what we had done in Dubai in 2019. And in addition there was only bronze while other metals were expected. But it illustrates well that Paralympism is developing everywhere. It is up to us, athletes, to question ourselves on our training, as well as at the level of the authorities to ensure that our support is even more effective, at the height of what is done elsewhere. Now, we must not forget that this French team is in full renewal and that it must gain experience. We lack spearheads but this is being built. A great generation is coming. It remains to be seen whether it will manage to perform well in a year’s time.
Does this add pressure to you since, clearly, in view of the Games, you will be the spearhead of French athletics? I don’t have that claim… Mandy (François-Elie) had a complicated season, which reflected on her performance at the Worlds, but she will come back very strong. You also have a dinosaur like Pierre Fairbank (52) who continues to resist the oncoming youth. Without forgetting Nanto (Nantenin Keita) who missed a medal by not much when she came out of two almost white seasons. And then there are young people who have to shake up the hierarchy. Finally, having won only four bronze medals can give us a positive slap and give us this rage until the Games in Paris. Sometimes you have to know how to use frustration wisely.
For French athletics as a whole, isn’t Paris coming too fast in the end? Whether it’s Olympic or Paralympic athletes, I don’t think this Olympiad was prepared as it should be on a lot of aspects. And this is not valid only in athletics. We are already hearing some Federation presidents suggesting that their representatives will be more ready in 2028 than in 2024. It is a pity and a bit sad to see this one year from the Games. Now, it’s still sport, there will be a strong popular enthusiasm and we can hope to see some nice surprises. That’s what we like, seeing David bring down Goliath. Even if it would have been better to arrive in the skin of the Goliath (smile).
One year from the Paralympic Games, do you think we are on the right tempo in terms of organization and accessibility? It’s hard to judge. As an athlete, I don’t have all the elements (he thinks). I think we will be ready on some aspects, and less on others.
Where are your concerns? On communication, on filling stadiums… We know very well that in France, filling a stadium for a Paralympic event is not so easy in some disciplines. We will have to attract the public. Despite the prohibitive price of tickets at the Olympics, this should not be a problem but what will it be for us? I understood that the ticket office was going to offer much more attractive prices, but it will also be necessary to promote certain athletes, to highlight them. We need to reduce this gap of consideration between an Olympic athlete and a Paralympian. We still have a long way to go in this area, as well as on pedagogy so that everyone better understands the different categories.
Some associations questioned the organization about accessibility… A few years ago, I remember, when France had obtained the organization of these Games, I had heard politicians say that in 2024, all metro lines would be vocalized for the blind and visually impaired. Ultimately, this will not be the case before 2030… This shows the big gap that exists between the promises and what will be done. Personally, I was consulted for certain things. But I don’t know if it will be possible to do everything in one year.
Do you feel that you, Paralympians, are really at the heart of the project? I know that some athletes are more listened to than others. As far as I’m concerned, Paris 2024 doesn’t really matter to me anymore. I don’t know why I’m no longer in their little papers but that’s how it is. Just on the sports programs that I have seen, it’s nonsense. But it’s not unique to these Games, it’s been the case for years. Makes you wonder who makes them? Probably no former athletes, it’s so absurd. If you want to see great performances, get the athletes in top shape! Decision-making is more often political than sporting.
Does Michaël Jeremiasz seem like a good choice to you? Absolutely. He manages to get things moving. He is very committed, and fortunately he is there. He is someone who does not hesitate to put his foot in the dish when necessary, and we need that. But it is not on his own that he can succeed. There must be other people as committed as him. They still have to be given the opportunity to do so.
He insisted a lot on the notion of heritage, on the fact that there should be a before and after Paris 2024 for the handicap in France… It is a certainty. But will it be? I have some reservations. We talk a lot about the Games but more as an end, and not as a starting point when that should be the case. I have the feeling that we want to organize beautiful Paralympic Games and that once that is done, we will be told that enough has been said about us disabled people, that we will lower the curtain and ciao… I exaggerate voluntarily but there is really this fear that after the Games, everything will collapse like a house of cards.
Alas, this has always been the case. Even a success story like London in 2012 ultimately left only a minor legacy in terms of accessibility in the English capital…Yes, that’s true, although I’m in no position to judge directly as I’ve been to very few times in London. But in terms of consideration of athletes, vision of disability, London was a real step forward. Now, we know that the Anglo-Saxons have a sports culture that the French do not have, or less. I remember the World Championships organized in London five years later, and every day half of the Olympic stadium was filled. It wasn’t the same success as the Games but still…
So, one year away from the Games, what is your predominant feeling? Can’t wait to get there, or worried that these Games won’t live up to your expectations? Impatience, very clearly. I have concerns about the legacy, but now that I have tasted the pleasure of racing at home during the Worlds organized in Charléty, with incredible adrenaline, I only want one thing: to relive it even bigger during the Games.
