In an evening not necessarily rich in emotions, we impatiently awaited the men’s 100m freestyle, the final race of the 3rd day of the French Championships, qualifiers for the Paris Olympics. And we were largely served. If Maxime Grousset, as expected, dominated the round trip of the pool to ensure his qualification in 47″33, the show came from his young runner-up, Rafael Fente Damers.
Too happy to have also been invited to the ball of the rings at the end of July in a personal record time of 48″14, the sprinter from Annecy found nothing better… than to dislocate his left shoulder while tapping for joy in its water line!
The smile of happiness quickly transformed into a grimace of pain for the teenager, 18 years old, born in the United States to a French mother and a Spanish father. So much so that the young man no longer even knew how to get out of the pool without worsening the pain even though all his opponents had evacuated the pool.
Immediately taken care of by the emergency services on site, who noted a dislocation, the new member of the FFlose had his shoulder put back in place before climbing onto the second step of the protocol podium wrapped in a towel and a t-shirt. shirt, then to go to the Chartres hospital to take exams. The person concerned did not seem too worried about the state of the damage.
#Chartres2024 | 🇫🇷 Ouch ouch ouch, it’s an image we don’t like to see: Rafael Fente-Damers seems to have a shoulder injury.
The young Frenchman hurt himself while celebrating his time, which qualified him for the Paris Games. He was taken care of by the medical staff. pic.twitter.com/dnNdtwQcqL
— francetvsport (@francetvsport) June 18, 2024
“I don’t know concretely what he did because I didn’t see,” slips Maxime Grousset. But he’s a guy who’s a little crazy and that’s what he’s good at. He is not afraid of anything and I think he will progress. » The two Blues are not the only ones to have achieved the minimums for La Défense.
Already qualified in the 400m freestyle, Anastasiia Kirpichnikova stood out in the 1,500m freestyle (15′59′’95). “I’m proud,” summarizes Philippe Lucas’ protégé. But I thought I would have a better time. It’s not easy when you’re all alone in a race…” Marie Wattel, too, has added a string to her bow. After the 100m butterfly, the CN Marseille swimmer won the 100m freestyle by achieving the exact time required for the Olympics (53”61). On the string. But enough.
“I’m happy because I gave everything, every inch,” she breathes. It’s the iconic race, it’s special, it’s a dream for so many years… I’m going to do the Games with the best in the world, incredible girls who inspire me. » After three days of competition, ten Tricolores have their tickets in their pockets for Paris.
