The Paris 2024 Olympic Games are approaching, and with them, the preparation of Olympic athletes is intensifying month by month, to be ready to collect as many medals as possible from July 26 to August 11, 2024. We've chosen to meet a dozen French athletes, who have already qualified or will be trying to qualify during the final months before the competition, to help you discover their passion and their world! This is your chance to find out more about some of the lesser-known disciplines or those recently added to the Olympic program, and to support the athletes who have touched your heart!
For the seventh interview in this series, we set out to meet Davina Michel, who spoke to Sortir à Paris about her sport, boxing, and her hopes and expectations for the Paris 2024 Games. A top-level athlete in English boxing, she has been qualified since 2023, and has been a member of the French national team for 10 years, having started boxing at the age of 12.
Paris 2024 Olympics: rules, history, programme... discover the boxing events in Paris
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It's a combat sport, practised by two people in a ring, wearing gloves, and the aim is to beat your opponent! (laughs)
Boxing is pretty special. The competition lasts ten days, and it's a draw, so I don't yet know which opponent I'm going to meet, or which day I'm going to box. We're judged by five judges who decide whether or not we win!
The first ones take place in Villepinte, if I'm not mistaken, and from the finals onwards, it's at Roland-Garros! It's going to be magnificent, I'm so happy and it's motivating me to get through all these events and meet up there!
It's Canada, because the world champion in my category (-75kg) is the Canadian.
It changes a lot of things, with everyone taking on board what we're saying, helping us and setting up all kinds of structures so that we can perform on the big day.
I can choose the competitions I want to take part in. We do a lot of training courses, and soon I'll be going to Colombia (Editor's note: the interview was conducted in November 2023), and I'll be preparing with the best!
It's beautiful and complicated at the same time! My father introduced me to combat sports at a very early age, starting with karate, kickboxing and finishing with English boxing. I'm from Martinique and it's made me travel a lot to so many different countries where I've shared some wonderful adventures. This sport has made me grow as a woman!
For me, boxing is life, it teaches me resilience, courage, it's allowed me to share with so many different people, in victory as in failure. It also enables me to earn a living today, which wasn't necessarily the case a year and a half ago!
Marie-José Pérec, because she's from the West Indies like me, and she's someone who's had a rather difficult and magnificent career!
It's my technique, my way of seeing fights and my ups and downs, that makes me a better sportswoman and a better person.
It's called noble art, and not for nothing! For me, it's not violent, it's a sport of strategy, where you have to find solutions, score points, push your limits... It's a sport that encompasses so many things, it's my favorite!
So you have to know that I'm scared all the time, in any case! It's not necessarily easy to get into the ring, but I'm a very courageous person and there's nofear without courage! It's about pushing back your limits and your fears, but I'm confident and, in any case, I've got my staff and my team with me to support me.
Many sports are considered masculine, but they don't have to be! But that doesn't stop me from being very feminine. Take a look at my social networks, I assure you I'm doing just fine! So far, I've been lucky, I've hit more than I've been hit. Frankly, people can talk, but in real life, you have to try!
It's the Boxing Club de Garges, a team I've been close to since the juniors, so when I was at INSEP, there were quite a few people from this club who were in the French team with me. I've found a family there! It's the best women's club too!
Don't be afraid, come and try it out! We're not necessarily all great competitors or Olympic champions, but it helps you become more aware of your body, relax and gain self-confidence too. I wasn't necessarily self-confident when I was younger, either because of my height - I'm 1.83m tall - or because of the way it made me feel, even mentally. There are a lot of benefits to boxing, you just have to take the plunge and you'll see!
I don't necessarily have a philosophy, but there are certain phrases that I say to myself to get ahead, like"Tchimbé raid, pa moli", which in my case means"hold on tight, don't weaken"!
For Paris 2024, it would be great for us to be together, look at us, support us! It's not often that we're at home, so we need to get out there as a team and show that we're there!
I love to eat, so I like good, gourmet restaurants!
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