Objective final phases for the Guyanese athlete, determined and with very high level preparation, as the European Athletics Championships approach, for which the 100m semi-finals and finals will take place on Sunday June 9. The semi-finals and finals of the women’s 4x100m relay are scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, June 11 and 12.
For Gémima Joseph, these European Championships constitute a dress rehearsal before the Olympic Games. She is aiming for at least a medal in the 100m: “It will allow me to take the plunge with the European athletes in any case. And it’s going to be a repetition, because it’s a big championship and a bit of the same preparations. It will be quite similar in terms of competition, although the games will be much bigger. And it will simply allow me to get into the swing of competition, it will serve as a rehearsal before the games. This year, I beat my record in 100 meters, it’s true that I’m quite competitive, so I allow myself to dream of medals, of a podium. Anyway, when I go to a competition, it’s always to win and with a lot of determination, even if on the other hand, the athletes are really competitive and have a very high level, but going there with this motivation of Going for the medal is what really allows you to surpass yourself. So, it’s certain that having beaten my record this year, I have even more hope and I’m going to go there with the knife between my teeth to really go for this place on the podium and the highest place if possible “.
Gémima Joseph also hopes to reproduce her recent performance as relay world vice-champion at the European Championships, despite very fast European competition: “It’s a goal, especially since we managed to become world vice-champion recently at the world relay championship. So there, we hope at the European level to surpass ourselves as well, even if it is true that the other European teams are very fast, we have traveled with all the teams, now, we will have all the European teams, so it is another competition. The line resets to zero, we are equal on the starting line. So there, it’s going to be a new challenge and we’re going to try our best to get a medal as well.”
Just after her world medal, Gémima Joseph completed a training camp in Jamaica with Glen Mills, Usain Bolt’s former coach. His coach Gaëtan Tariaffe affirms that these training sessions brought him a lot of positive things: “ We still have one at the global level today. So we corrected a few things, notably its starting position, and then the transition. So we have moved forward with modifications in this sector, and especially its high-level experience. It was important to rub shoulders with the great and athletic people and to have been in the conditions of Jamaicans because today, whatever anyone says, they are the best at that level. And when you want to be better, when you want to be good, you have to go and meet them, as in other disciplines, judo which goes to China or Japan, it’s completely normal to go and exchange, to seek advice, see how things are going so that you can re-mobilize yourself, certify what you are used to doing, but also take what will allow you to optimize your performance.”
Damien CHAILLOT
