“We closed our mouths”: gymnast Marine Boyer enjoys Les Bleues’ feat at the World Championships

Marine Boyer dreamed of a medal at her last world championships. Having said goodbye to the French Open with a victory on the balance beam, the French captain accomplished the feat this time.

Along with her teammates (Mélanie De Jesus Dos Santos, Colin Devyar, Morgan Osissek, Laurette Sharpie and Jenna Laroui), she won the bronze medal in the team event, behind the United States and Brazil. “Not used to it,” it even took the French women a while to understand that they had to get on the podium… “We didn’t even hear France,” explains the 23-year-old Frenchwoman with a smile. This Thursday, she returned to that wild night and that performance that the Blues hope to repeat in less than a year at home.

You won your first world medal at the last world championships… How do you feel the day after that performance?

SEA BOYER. I didn’t sleep much. It was hard to process… Last night I tossed and turned in bed, pinching myself to see if it was real. And it’s all real! I’m so proud of us and the work we were able to accomplish.

As captain, how did you feel about the group during this competition?

The main goal was Olympic qualification. We got it and were very happy. The final was a plus, and we never thought about a medal. We did our work, device by device, without really looking closely at the recordings, without really looking closely at what was happening nearby. But there were falls for others, not for us.

“I couldn’t count anymore, my legs were shaking.”

When did you realize that the medal was meant for you?

Until the end we motivated each other, encouraged each other. To be honest, I thought we would finish fourth. We went to beam, China and Brazil went to vault, where the scores are usually higher. But we all looked at each other, we said to each other we do our job and then we’ll see. Morgana goes first and makes her move. In turn, I get there. Only Melanie remains.

We come together, we hold each other tightly. We encourage her as much as we can and she does something crazy! The result is known, but I did not realize that we were moving forward. I could no longer count, my legs were shaking. We had achieved an achievement, but I needed to see our result on the board to realize it.

During qualifying, we saw you very combative, but more intense. There we saw how much fun you had. How do you explain this?

We were more relaxed. Olympic qualification is very difficult. I went through two, I know how difficult it is. This is a matter of a few tenths, and we have no room for error. We fought in qualifying not to fall. There it really was just a plus and we took it that way. We were seventh in qualifying, we didn’t expect much. We were all there for each other. Everyone did their job the way they were supposed to. The work pays off and the entire team receives rewards.

Your ability to withstand and cope with pressure at the end of competition has sometimes been criticized. This time you finished confidently on the balance beam, one of the most difficult events. Did you want to prove something?

First of all, we do things for ourselves, but it is true that we have been criticized a lot and that even if we did not want to see it, we saw it. It hurts when you train hard for six or even seven hours a day and you get criticized just because you wrestled on the balance beam. I think we have closed some people’s mouths (laughter) and still good! We have a medal, the rest…

“This medal can only give us energy and goodwill.”

Does this performance bring you closer to Paris 2024?

We have proven that we are capable of something. Of course, we hope that the work will pay off and we will be able to fulfill our dream. I hope we do it and end on a high note, even if most of all I want to have fun. I’m here because I love life and the gym is my passion! We will work, we will work again. This medal can only give us additional energy and goodwill for the future.

What will also need to be done at the Olympic Games?

First of all, we will enjoy the medal. I think we’ll all understand this when it’s all over. There we are still in it, some competitions have not yet finished (individual competitions remain). But they only pay for work, and this will determine whether we get into the company or not. In itself, this is so far and close at the same time… We will work physically, mentally, and over difficulties. We will do our best to be 100% on your big day.