{"id":1510,"date":"2024-07-06T23:05:09","date_gmt":"2024-07-06T23:05:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/2024\/07\/06\/highlights-from-the-athletes-interviews\/"},"modified":"2024-07-06T23:05:09","modified_gmt":"2024-07-06T23:05:09","slug":"highlights-from-the-athletes-interviews","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/en\/highlights-from-the-athletes-interviews\/","title":{"rendered":"Highlights from the athletes’ interviews"},"content":{"rendered":"

Marileidy PAULINO – 400 m<\/strong>
” It\u2019s always a pleasure to come to Paris. France is one of my favourite countries. My main aim is to run the best possible time in the best possible way. A time of 48\u2019\u2019 would be perfect, which is what I prepare for with every competition. I feel very good and very well prepared. I\u2019ve worked on all my muscle groups and I hope to secure the gold medal in a month\u2019s time. The Olympic title would be a real achievement, not just for myself, but also for all the people of the Dominican Republic. The last gold medal for our country dates back to F\u00e9lix Sanchez at London 2012, in the 400 m hurdles. Mentally, I feel extremely good thanks be to God and to reading the Bible. That is where I draw my motivation from and it is thanks to God that I\u2019ve managed to accomplish everything I have in my life. I\u2019m very proud of my faith and my relationship with god, who is very important to me. I am very happy to be in Paris as the Olympic Games approaches, but I need to ensure I remain calm and quietly confident so as not to get overwhelmed by the emotion and the challenge ahead. It\u2019s a mental work-up to make sure I arrive at the Stade de France as fresh as possible in three weeks\u2019 time.”<\/p>\n

Laura MUIR – 1500 m <\/strong>
” To be officially qualified for the Olympic Games means that I feel a sense of release for Sunday\u2019s race. Even though I\u2019ve told myself the whole season that I\u2019ll be at the Olympics, I still had to validate my selection. It\u2019s great to be here in the same city as the Games, safe in the knowledge that I\u2019ll be back here in less than a month\u2019s time.
I think the race will be pretty fast as Faith Kipyegon will be there. It\u2019ll be my last 1,500 m before the Games, so it will be a great dress rehearsal and a chance to size up the competition. This race will give us a good indication of where we\u2019re at with three weeks to go until this season\u2019s main event. I\u2019m going to go into a big training block off the back of this to prepare myself as best I can for the Olympics. It\u2019s not easy to deal with as the excitement grows, but I hope that the race will be fast so I can get as much information as possible about the competition and my performance. 
How does it feel to come up against Faith? I\u2019m just preparing to run fast and try to keep up with her for as long as possible! I\u2019ve already competed against her several times and I\u2019ve had the privilege to be in the same race as her in each of her world record performances. I\u2019m her lucky charm of sorts! It\u2019s an honour for me to be at the start with her and to compete against an athlete of this level.”<\/p>\n

Alison DOS SANTOS – 400 m<\/strong>
” I\u2019ve had a great season so far with some good times, though I\u2019d have liked to have run even faster. I\u2019m thrilled to be in Paris. It\u2019s my first time here and it\u2019s an exciting city for every possible reason. The main aim is to run very fast in the Olympic final, but the idea is to gradually improve on my time in each race the closer we get to the main event. I\u2019m not in a position to announce this or that time, but I do want to know where I\u2019m at and to run faster than my SB of 46\u2019\u201963.”<\/p>\n

Emmanuel WANYONYI – 800 m <\/strong>
” I\u2019m ready to run fast on Sunday and I\u2019m happy to have the opportunity to run in the Diamond League here. I\u2019m expecting it to be a special race with this big crowd. I\u2019m well prepared and I feel no pressure on my shoulders. It\u2019s a proper preparation for the Paris Games.
Talking of the Games, I do feel a lot of pressure on my shoulders for that. It\u2019s a major event, which requires conscientious preparation. It will be tough but I\u2019m going to work on that. The difference between that and the Worlds is that it is the Olympic Games, plain and simple. It will be my first Olympics and everyone is talking about that and that alone.
My recent time of 1\u201941\u2019\u201970 at the championships in Kenya is an added pressure. I\u2019m still young and everyone will be watching me closely now. I\u2019m trying to focus on my training rather than on what people outside might be saying to me. I\u2019m not thinking about David Rudisha\u2019s world record. I just want to win my races and improve on my times.”<\/p>\n

Gabriel TUAL – 800 m<\/strong>
\u201cI feel good and I\u2019m delighted to be back in the game after last year\u2019s injury. I\u2019m looking forward to being back out on the track! Tomorrow, the plan is not to overthink things and just run fast whatever happens, to breaking point if need be. The aim is to hunt down a fast time. I\u2019ve prepared mentally and physically for this race, just as I did for the European championships in Rome and the France Elite competitions. When running on home soil, I prefer to focus on all the people around me who will be supporting me rather than on the risk that things don\u2019t pan out well and I get beaten.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mondo DUPLANTIS – pole vault<\/strong>
” The pressure is something you end up getting used to. I\u2019m focusing on myself. If people are expecting so much from me, then there is a reason for that. I\u2019ve been capable of jumping very high of late. I just want to prove to myself that I\u2019m in good enough shape to break the world record. It\u2019s my last competition before the Games, so it\u2019s important to  come out of the stadium filled with confidence so as to arrive at the Games in three weeks\u2019 time with all systems go. I know too that the other jumpers will be in good shape and will go pretty high, so it should be exciting for the public. The level will be the equivalent of an Olympic final given the line-up.
There are still a few stages to go before a jump of 6.30 m can be envisaged, but it\u2019s a possibility for the future. I love the sensation of being about to do a jump that nobody has ever cleared before. The adrenalin rises. That\u2019s where I feel the most free mentally, where everything is sort of flowing in a mixture of hyper-concentration and letting go. You know that everything has to be perfect, or almost, for things to work out. You cannot allow yourself to get lost in the detail.”<\/p>\n

Lorenzo SIMONELLI – 110 m hurdles<\/strong>
“It\u2019s my first time in Paris. Since my victory at the European championships, I\u2019ve been feeling very good. I\u2019ve been awaiting this event since the start of the season. It was crazy. All my friends and family were in the stadium to support me. I feel good. I was tired after the European champs after the ensuing decompression, but I\u2019ve really picked myself up and I\u2019m feeling ready to run fast over the hurdles. Tomorrow will be an epic competition. I\u2019d like to run a sub-13\u2019\u201910 time, but I know there will be some very strong guys out there, who will bring their A\u2019 game in the final of the Olympic Games. It will be a very competitive race and an excellent test for Paris. We\u2019re going to enjoy it and have fun!”<\/p>\n

Sasha ZHOYA – 110 m haies \/ 110 m hurdles<\/strong>
\u201cThe global standard is very full-on this year. It\u2019s going to be very quick. I\u2019m eager to see what I\u2019m capable of tomorrow against what will be a higher level of athletes than at the French championships. It\u2019s the type of competition which pushes me to give my very best. It will be my true comeback with two races without starting blocks that slip around. I\u2019m eager to get down to it and to see how things play out. On home turf, you can rely on your family and friends. Each time I race in Paris, I feel this energy and I make use of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Malaika MIHAMBO \/ long jump<\/strong>
” I feel better than I did a few days ago, but you can hear in my voice that I\u2019m still not fully recovered from the Covid that kept me away from the German championships. I still need some time to reach my best level. I think I have two or three jumps in my legs and I hope I\u2019ll be able to make the most of it to secure the best possible result. I don\u2019t have any goals in terms of numbers, but I\u2019ve been training well. I just want to see where I\u2019m at and work on my performance with a view to the Olympic Games. Staying in the game and in competition mode is important with three weeks to go till the Games. It\u2019s my first competition in France since the World Championships (15-17yrs) in 2011 in Lille. I\u2019m pleased to be jumping in Paris for the first time and I\u2019ve heard that the stadium will be full\u2026 I can\u2019t wait to see that. I hope the crowd will be full of enthusiasts.”<\/p>\n

Larissa IAPICHINO – Saut en longueur \/ long jump <\/strong>
“Rome was incredible! The European championships on home soil were an honour and a pleasure. The atmosphere and energy were incredible. I loved it! Jumping 7 m is a goal for all women who do the long jump, but it\u2019s not an obsession for me. I do my best in training and it all naturally follows on from that.
I\u2019m still very young. I\u2019ll be 22 in a few weeks\u2019 time. I still need to gain a lot of experience to be the jumper I want to be and to jump in excess of 7 m. As such, I still have quite a big technical work-up ahead of me.
I would love to hold the family record, which is also the Italian record but at 7.11 m that\u2019s still a long way off. My mother (Fiona May) will have a while to wait before she sees me breaking her record, but I think she\u2019d really like me to be her successor. I\u2019ve got that in the back of my mind, but it\u2019s going to take some work and perhaps a bit of luck too. I\u2019m not pressurising myself in that regard.”<\/p>\n

Thibaut Collet – Perche \/ pole vault<\/strong>
\u201cI feel pretty good. The aim was to arrive here in good shape in the run-up to the Olympic Games. I feel fairly confident. Tomorrow will be my last competition before the Games. It\u2019s a very important stage and a final dress rehearsal with an extraordinary level of competition. The stadium will be full. We\u2019ll be able to get an idea of what a packed Stade de France will be like to perform in. It\u2019ll be great to get our heads around what we\u2019ll be up against in a few weeks\u2019 time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Renaud Lavillenie – Perche \/ pole vault<\/strong>
\u201cMy main takeaway is that I\u2019ve managed to get myself up to a level where I could be a contender at the Games. I\u2019m pole vaulting again without fear or apprehension, which means I can cast my mind forward to what comes next. I can do everything I love doing. From the end of the competition in Angers, I knew that the Olympic adventure was over, but I couldn\u2019t have done all this work just to head home and go on holiday. I\u2019m fortunate that I get a chance to compete at the Meeting de Paris, which is a wonderful showcase for the sport. At least I\u2019ll be able to say that I jumped in Paris this summer, even though there won\u2019t be any rings for me (laughs)!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Read the highlights of the athletes’ interviews at the press conference on Saturday, on...","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":1168,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"city":[],"class_list":["post-1510","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-paris"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1510","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1510"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1510\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1510"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1510"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1510"},{"taxonomy":"city","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paris.diamondleague.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/city?post=1510"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}