It is a bronze medal that is worth gold in his eyes. He dedicates it “to the entire French public”, to his family, especially his daughter Nayira, aged 2 and a half. “And to my grandchildren when I have some”, smiles Djamili-Dini Aboudou, only 28 years old but already looking towards the very distant future.
He was defeated this Wednesday evening at 10:40 p.m. at the Roland-Garros stadium, in the semi-final of the super-heavyweight (over 92 kg), the premier category for boxers, against the Spaniard Ayoub Ghadfa Drissi El Aissaoui. The 107 kg, 1.81 m tall lad was no match for the Iberian, who was 17 cm taller than him, almost a head, and was beaten on points unanimously by the five judges in the ring set up in the heart of the Philippe-Chatrier court for these Olympic Games in Paris.
Dominated in the first two rounds, the puncher went all out in the third round by being “more on (his) legs” and offering a nice hook to his rival from Marbella, a fan of Mike Tyson and Mohamed Ali. But it wasn’t enough. For his first Olympic Games (he missed those in Tokyo in 2021 due to an arm injury), the athlete from Coudekerque-Branche, near Dunkirk (North), left satisfied while “nobody expected (him)”.
After his defeat, the boxer who loves to move along the ropes and make his opponents’ heads spin with his own style thanked his supporters, brandishing, while jumping, his fist which looked like a gesture of victory before a hit by NTM, “Ma Benz”, set the place on fire during his eclipse, much more than that of Jul, “Tchikita”, during his entrance on stage. “The atmosphere was incredible, worse than in Villepinte (the Arena Paris Nord, the scene of his previous fights)!”, savored the six-time French champion.
Long before he entered the ring, the French supporters were already shouting themselves hoarse. “Allez les Bleus!”, they chanted, killing two birds with one stone by also supporting Sofiane Oumiha for his final organized in the wake of the “Djam” fight.
“He who does not jump is not French!”, they continue while the Spanish giant is copiously booed. A leader with a megaphone is having a field day. With the roof closed on the clay court den, we reach the limits of bearable decibels and our ears say thank you when we escape from this cauldron towards the mixed zone, where the athletes pour out their hearts on their performances. “Are there any French supporters here?”, the mistress of ceremonies even dares to ask.
It’s not just the fiery atmosphere of Roland-Garros that the Northerner will remember. His entire Olympic adventure will enter the Pantheon of his “very good memories”. “I lost but I’m happy with everything I did,” he says positively. In front of a TV screen, he watched the last minutes of the fight of his compatriot Sofiane Oumiha, beaten in the final and who will have to settle for silver. “I’m gutted for him,” he comments.
“Djam” promises to come and encourage the last Frenchman in the running, Billal Bennama, this Thursday evening at 10:30 p.m. in the ring at Roland-Garros. “I hope he goes and gets the gold medal,” he crosses his fingers, or rather his gloves.
