Recognized as one of the greatest in his discipline, this star does not mince his words about France.
The 2024 Paris Olympic Games seem to be going as smoothly as possible in terms of organization and for French athletes, despite the many fears for several months about the opening ceremony, security and the quality of the water in the Seine…
Let’s not get too excited, however, because the Olympic Games are still far from over and we must not forget the Paralympic Games, which will also have a very big stake in France’s international reputation. A few weeks ago, a French star, Yohann Diniz, did not mince his words about the organization of Paris 2024, openly criticizing France by drawing a parallel with London 2012.
“When we had the Olympic Games, we talked about the transformation of sport within society in France but we didn’t see any change, whether it was the place of sport in National Education, detection… We are only waking up now and we are talking a lot about the legacy. We needed to make a fundamental revolution and we didn’t do it. We didn’t prepare for these Games like the English did in 2012,” explained the Frenchman for the Union.
The walker has a complicated history with the Olympics. Triple European champion of the 50 kilometers walk, in 2006 in Gothenburg, in 2010 in Barcelona and in 2014 in Zurich, world champion of the distance in 2017, Yohann Diniz is one of the greatest, but has never shone at the Olympic Games despite three participations in 2012, 2016 and 2021.
In 2012, the Frenchman finished a distant 8th after a failure and a fall at the 36th kilometer before being disqualified after the race. In 2016, in Rio, Brazil, considered the favorite, he suffered gastrointestinal problems and had to stop momentarily at the side of the road while he was leading the race. In 2021, after taking the lead of the race, the Frenchman stopped several times, hampered by stomach problems, as in Rio. He would abandon a few kilometers later.
Since then, the Frenchman has retired and has experienced difficult times, being close to depression, while remaining outspoken. “I was a top athlete for 17-18 years. I clearly had a depression, like in 2013, because I had too many doubts. I had trouble projecting myself. I got help otherwise the deterioration would have been worse than that,” he confessed once again for the Union.