“There is pride” in Benjamin Compaore. For him who started at a young age in athletics at ASPTT Strasbourg, and who will celebrate his 34th birthday in early August, qualifying for JO de Tokyo was not obvious. And yet, the athlete will be there this summer for his third consecutive Olympic Games. He enters the contest on August 3, for the qualifications of the triple jump.
Some see it as an achievement. But for Benjamin Compaoré, this qualification is not an end in itself: “I want to create the feat there. In London, I finished 6th. In Rio, 10th. I want to do better, even if it’s not easy “.
I am leaving with the ambition to do better than what I have already done.
Now licensed to the CA Montreuil (Seine-Saint-Denis), and in good physical shape, Benjamin Compaoré has not yet fully recovered his sensations: “My best performance of this year would allow me to go to the final. But for a medal, I will have to jump to my personal best”… in other words the 17.46m of his gold medal at the 2014 European Championships.
In 2018, he was close to amputation
The athlete has come a long way. In 2018, he was operated on on his ankle, due to ligaments in too bad condition. But he fell victim to a serious infection, caught two staphylococci, and came close to amputation. “But I’m still here”, he said with a smile.
If I create the feat in Tokyo, why not continue?
Benjamin Compaoré now has three hats: high-level athlete, trainer atNational Sports Institute (Insep) and dad of three little girls. “Despite this schedule, I managed to find legs that I had not had for a few seasons”, he explains, while stressing that he “gives priority to its athletes” before himself.
The Tokyo Olympics will not be his last competition. He promises it, he has some “still under the foot “:” If I create the feat in Tokyo, why not continue? “
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