On Friday, July 26, the day of the opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympic Games, Ato Plodzicki-Faoagali saw his coach die in front of him, the victim of a seizure. This Sunday, July 28, the Samoan boxer insisted on getting into the ring for a fight as a final tribute to his coach.
3 min
With our special correspondent,
His face still bears the scars of his difficult fight against the Belgian Victor Schelstraete in the under 92 kg category at the JO 2024. The trace of his injury under his left eye, treated after the fight, remains visible. But this pain is minimal compared to that which Ato Plodzicki-Faoagali has experienced and continues to experience since Friday.
On the morning of July 26, a few hours before the big Olympic celebrations, he saw his coach Lionel Elika Fatupaito leave, the victim of a cardiac arrest at the age of 60. My coach died in front of mesays the 25-year-old boxer, his voice full of emotion. It’s very hard to imagine. He had his fainting spell in front of me. It was a shock. A hard blow for me. »
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Getting into the ring on Sunday was not easy for the man who met his late coach at the age of 15. It was very difficult. I have been in pain for two days, but I had to fight today. “In the ring, despite a fierce fight, he was beaten by Victor Schelstraete. But the Belgian made an elegant gesture at the end of the fight by raising his opponent’s hand as if he had been the winner and encouraging the applause of the public. ” My opponent offered his condolences, he is a good sportconfides Plodzicki-Faoagali. I appreciated the fact that he raised my hand. He beat me and he has all my respect. »
“It’s boxing, it’s life…”
” It takes a big heart to come and box. I don’t know if I would have had the strength to do it personally.testifies his opponent Schelstraete. He fought until the end with his heart. Great respect for him. »
The defeat was obviously incidental in such circumstances for the Samoan, seeded number one in the draw and who could have hoped to go far without the tragedy he experienced. It’s been tough these last few days, but I have no excuses. This is boxing, this is life. This is a sport where we train, we fight. And if you lose, you lose. We go back to the fight and we train to be stronger. We feed ourselves and we get stronger. I’m enjoying being here, I gave 100% and I’m proud to represent the Samoa Islands. »
Ato Plodzicki-Faoagali now wants to find calm, in order to grieve. But just before letting go of the microphones, he still has, for the first time, a sparkle in his eye and a light on his face when asked what kind of man his coach was. He was an honest man, very humble and very calm. I met him in 2015, he brought me balance. A father to me, a unifying man. »
To consultOlympic Games events program