In 85 days and after several years of preparation, France will host the biggest international sporting event: the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The eyes of the whole world will converge on Paris and other competition venues, in France and Overseas. Although Uzège-Pont du Gard whether devoid of the passage of the flame or of events, the territory is indeed part of the Olympic dynamic.
Shirine Boukli: rage and the desire to be the best
She is one of the greatest chances of French medals according to her federation. The judoka Aramonaise Shirine Boukli will open the ball and perhaps the Olympic titles counter for France from the very first days of competition. The young woman, now 25 years old, is entered in the under 48kg category and should shine on the tatamis installed in the heart of the capital, at the Arena Champ de Mars. Meeting with this young prodigy of judo.
You come from a family of judokas. Your father, your brother, your uncles practice this discipline. When did you know you wanted to beat them and when did you realize you had the ability?
Since I was little, I had this desire to be the best. I had this thing of wanting to win everything. My father was my example. When I started to do well on the tatami mats, I was told that I had potential, so I progressed day by day. They told me, “you are efficient, you are consistent, you have openings in the Hope Center and in the France Center“You see yourself designing a future that is possible so you give yourself the means to achieve it.
But you shouldn’t plan too much so you motivate yourself for the next competition, the near future, not so distant. And little by little, you see that you are able to achieve your goals.
In a competition, when can you allow yourself to believe in victory?
I concentrate on the first fight, it’s the most important. I’m fully into my first match. I know I have to be focused because whoever the competitor is, it’s going to be difficult. But I know that I am capable and above all that I want to win. Afterwards, it’s fight after fight but it’s certain that if I go there, it’s to win. That’s what I want.
When did you believe you would qualify for the Paris Olympics and once you obtained it, did you immediately realize you were going?
I would say that after the Tokyo Games, I was number 1 in my category in France. I had won the masters, obtained a grand slam medal so I said to myself that it was very possible that I would be involved in the Games. I just had to do as usual. I wanted to drive the point home with the European Championships in Montpellier last November.
So having my ticket for Paris 2024 was not necessarily a surprise but it was reassuring about my physical condition and my abilities. When you go to competition, it’s not like training, you never know what can happen.
Was the Olympic Games or more broadly this career as a high-level sportswoman a childhood dream?
When I was very little, I didn’t think about the Games because I didn’t think they were accessible. For me, only Teddy Riners could go there (laughs). I was always too small to be able to do them. Until the moment I arrived at the National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance, with girls who were going to or who had participated in the Games. You find yourself next to these sportswomen while you, for your part, are thinking about your junior circuit.
But you tell yourself that a misunderstanding could also happen to you. That there is nothing to lose. And Paris 2024, in my head it was programmed. I am part of a generation of athletes conditioned for these Games.
What memories do you have of your years at the Aramon Judo club?
Some pleasure. There, I had fun, I went to all the sessions. It was pleasant to me. I loved the club. My uncle trained me even though, to be honest, I was maybe horrible and rude to him (laughs).
You say that your defeat in the first round of the Tokyo Games “made (you) the person (you are) today”. To what extent?
I believe that when you are a high-level athlete, you write your story, your career. The Tokyo Games were a very good experience but also a very bad one. Words aren’t strong enough to express how tough this first round elimination was. But I am strong and when it comes to getting back up, this kind of experience fuels me to surpass myself and be even better. I set myself a goal: to be Olympic champion in Paris.
It created an inner rage that motivates me every day. That’s what makes you different from the other girls. This kind of life experience builds us, we learn to really know ourselves, our needs, our motivations. This rage in me will be positive. My goal is to arrive at the Games with all my abilities.
Doing the Olympic Games in France, wearing the colors of your country in your country, what does that feel like?
It’s crazy, it’s crazy luck. It’s incredible. It’s a crazy event and when it’s in your country, it’s even more so. And when you’re the only representative in your weight category in judo, there’s nothing more beautiful.
What is the symbolism of the Olympic Games for you?
It’s the Holy Grail of everything I’ve done since I was four years old. We have already done plenty of competitions with the girls. This is a day that takes place every four years. It has inestimable value for any athlete. It’s time to write history, your history, that of a discipline and your country.
What would you say to little Shirine, the one who fought on Aramon’s tatamis?
Little one, keep having fun, because otherwise it’s pointless. Continue to believe in yourself and give it your all.
We know that the Games have a strong influence on club registrations. Do you think that you have a certain role to play in the future of judo and more particularly women’s judo?
Certainly. I know that we serve as an example for many young people. For them, bringing home medals, especially with Games taking place on the territory, is a source of inspiration. I think it’s going to get even more publicity.
What we want is to transmit values and messages through our struggles. And it will perhaps motivate young people, through our way of speaking, of mobilizing ourselves, our history. I think we’re going to raise awareness among a lot of people because we started like them, in a club, with friends. I would like to be an example and a source of motivation for young athletes.
Do you remember the first Games you saw on television?
No, I don’t remember. Rio 2016, I watched and France won five medals, a great harvest. I also remember Priscilla Gneto’s bronze medal at the London Games.
Émilie Sonvico: qualification objective
Although she did not win her ticket for the Games during the Olympic qualifying tournament organized at the beginning of March, the boxer, Uzétienne by adoption Emilie Sonvico don’t give up: she intends to find a place in the ring to represent the French nation at the Games.
His knocks echo in the room Uzès boxing. Facing the coach and figure of the ducal city Salem Maharzi, Émilie Sonvico is concentrated and continues the strikes in the bear paws put on by her partner. One more step, at home, in his Olympic preparation.
In agreement with her federation, the boxer allowed herself a little return to her roots before seeking, through her mind and the strength of her fists, a qualification for the Olympic Games. Paris 2024 in the under 66kg category.
After missing the boat last March during an Olympic qualifying tournament organized in Italy, the adopted Uzétienne no longer has the right to make mistakes: she must finish in the final four in Bangkok, at the end of May, to hope to get your ticket for the summer sporting event.
And the sportswoman seems to be in top form. Having just returned from a preparation tournament in the United States, where she vied for second place, Émilie Sonvico is “full of confidence“. “I competed against tough girls. I feel ready for what’s next“After several weeks in Colorado, the sportswoman found Uzès at the end of April. “France has skipped the European Championships which take place in Belgrade (Serbia). The federation favors Olympic preparation and meetings with more distant countries“, precise Emilie Sonvico.
A sportswoman like at home
Now aged 35, the young woman, passionate about sport since childhood, explains that she started boxing “late”. “I did athletics for 15 years, at a high level (French sprint champion among cadet-juniors, title in 100m and 200m, editor’s note) but a knee injury forced me to stop, remembers the athlete. One day, my best friend suggested I try boxing, just to let off some steam.r”.
This is how Émilie Sonvico’s second sporting career began to take shape, at just 20 years old. A year later, she left the Paris region where she was from for the ducal city and joined the local club. In Uzès, she “breathes better”. This is where her favorite club is, which she attends as soon as her high-level sports schedule allows her to do so.
“In this club, I feel at home, pampered and nestled, she smiles. Unfortunately, I am the only girl licensee now. We often think that boxing is a man’s sport, but women can also come. The Uzès club is very open and inclusive. And then, if anyone ever bothers me, it’s settled in the ring (laughs)“. At the same time, Émilie Sonvico is also employed by the City of Uzès to the Sports and Leisure department.”It makes me feel good to work and have a change of scenery. Being in the French team is very exciting. We go to competitions, we spend our lives in hotels… Sometimes, when I wake up, I no longer know where I am. So it makes me feel good to sleep in my bed.”.
“I was born into a sports family. The Games have always been present in my life”
Émilie Sonvico for Le Républicain d’Uzès.
If the final qualifying tournament that can offer her a place in the ring at the Arena Paris Nord in Villepinte begins on May 26, Émilie Sonvico and the other members of the French delegation and staff will take off on May 8, “the time of acclimatization to climatic conditions and food. Behind, we continue with the tournament“.
A “direct elimination” competition which requires the boxer to reach the semi-finals if she does not want to see her Olympic dreams disappear. “In the category, there are four places for the Games“, continues the sportswoman.
Émilie Sonvico is convinced: she has the keys to getting her ticket to the Games and is not looking back. “There are very few regrets about big events like the Busto Arsizio tournament (Italy). We give everything and what needs to happen happens. Today, I am more physically mature, with good muscle density. I have the capacity for explosiveness and speed, that’s my great strength. Boxing is a game of chess. You have to be there on the big day at the right time.”.
Participating in the Games in Paris would be highly symbolic for the athlete.”who saw the Stade de France built“. “I was born into a sports family. The Games have always been present in my life. I admit that I would have preferred to participate in the Rio Games because it is more exotic or Tokyo to bring back a suitcase full of cell phones (laughs)“But doing the Games in your country is extra pressure.
We are looked at and in the eyes of the public, there is real mutual aid. If they could get in the ring to help you, the crowd would. And in the worst cases, if I am not qualified, I will be in the Arena to support my friends,” concludes Émilie Sonvico, putting on her gloves.
2024-05-10 08:36:53
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