MEDALS – With two new titles, for a total of 61 medals on Thursday evening, the Blues continue to shine three days from the end.
What if the French Paralympic team started aiming higher than a place in the top 8, the objective set before these Games? If three Olympic titles remain to be won to reach the twenty mark announced by Marie-Amélie Le Fur, the president of the French Paralympic Committee, all the lights are green for the Blues three days before the end of the competitions with 61 podiums on the counter – six more than in Tokyo – and a 5e place in the medal standings, while judoka Sandrine Martinet won silver in -48 kg J2, as did Timothée Adolphe in the 100 m T11.
Cycling completes its collection
After the crazy day experienced on Wednesday during the time trials (11 medals, including 4 gold), the French team, in no way sated or slowed down by the rain that drenched Clichy-sous-Bois, added a chapter to its superb campaign. Florian Jouanny (H1-2) brilliantly retained his title during the road race, beating his great rival, the Spaniard Sergio Garrote Muñoz, by 22 seconds.
The Isérois (quadriplegic) only deplored one thing, at the end of a perfect scenario, the absence of a medal for his partner, Anaïs Vincent (5e of the online race, H1-4): « I managed my efforts and managed to attack him (Sergio Garrote, Ed.) in the last lap to get it. I had a bit of a scare on the last descent, where I slipped, and I almost went straight into the roundabout. And then I was able to enjoy the last straight with all the encouragement from the crowd, it was really great. » He still has to live the relay: « We are a great team, we will do everything to get a second gold medal. » To prolong the blue euphoria: « It’s fantastic. Whether on the track or on the road. It’s a great harvest of medals, let it continue, it’s great. »
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Jouanny was heard as the Blues signed a magnificent double in the afternoon in the H3 category. After his success in the time trial on Wednesday, Mathieu Bosredon (paraplegic since childhood) repeated the feat in the road race at the end of a show of strength. Having started alone in front almost from the start, the 33-year-old from Corrèze had the misfortune of puncturing during the 2e tour.
Caught and overtaken, the Frenchman came back at lightning speed on his opponents, before flying irremediably towards victory, dragging in his wake his compatriot Johan Quaile, silver medalist like the day before. Loïc Vergnaud (right leg amputee) offered himself a new silver medal (the 5e of his career, the 2e during these Games) behind the untouchable Dutchman Mitch Valize. Which brings France’s total to 22 in paracycling.
Swimming, the other team at the top
« In the Village, we exchange with all the disciplines, we have a nice little squabble with the swimmers, because we want to have more medals than them, it’s good for the nation. »smiles cyclist Dorian Foulon. On Thursday, Laurent Chardard won a bronze medal in the 100m freestyle (S6), his second at these Games after his thirde place, already, during the 50m butterfly.
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And it took just one unfortunate hundredth for the Frenchman to manage to take silver ahead of the Brazilian Talisson Glock. On the other hand, for the gold, the Italian Antonio Fantin dominated the race with more than 2 seconds ahead of his runner-up Auriverde. With Ugo Didier and Hector Denayer (200 m medley, SM9), who signed a nice double in silver and bronze, French swimming has 13 medals.
A first for Michaud
In shooting, Tanguy de La Forest is no longer the only one flying the French flag in Châteauroux. Jean-Louis Michaud won the bronze medal in the mixed 50m rifle prone position SH1, which adds to the gold and silver previously won by La Forest to bring the total for the French delegation at these Games to three. The 41-year-old from Grenoble, world champion in 2023 and bronze medallist at the European Championships this year, is on the podium for his first participation in the Games.
Although he fought for the title for a long time, the former sniper in the Alpine Hunters cracked somewhat towards the end and was beaten by the German Natascha Hiltrop and the Swedish Anna Benson. After having joined the French amputee football team for a while, the Grenoble native, who lost part of his right leg in 2011 after stepping on a mine during a mission in Afghanistan, did well to opt for the rifle rather than football.
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