Dorian Koninckx: “My goal will be to perform well from the start of the season.”

Pope Information: Dorian, you are a world champion, ambitions are high for 2024

Dorian Coninx: I have world champion status, the Games are in Paris next year, and there are many reasons why I want to be very strong. Looking at the team we have which includes Vincent (Louis) who is a two-time world champion, Leo (Berguier) who was crowned last year, and Pierre (Le Curie) on the podium in the Grand Final, it’s not just me, we’re a close-knit team, it’s great to be a part of. from him.

Pope Information: 3 different Frenchmen have become world champions in the past four years, and this is proof that it is not because you are a world champion that makes you win the following year.

Capital: In fact, combining two titles is somewhat complicated, as in the Games the race is for one day while the World Championships are held over several races, and we cannot compare the Olympic Games to another race in the calendar. Next year will be special, I’m impatient but I want to take it easy, step by step, it’s my recovery. Then there will be the phase where I train properly, the first competitions, I won’t put pressure on myself and wake up every morning thinking about the games because that will be counterproductive.

Le Pope-info: Has 2023 changed a lot of things in your head? Decisive steps have been taken

Capital: Yes and no. I have found the consistency I have been striving for for many years very satisfying from a personal point of view. The title of champion is the icing on the cake and reinforces that consistency. I finished the year feeling confident that it had been successful in terms of my mindset, the way I was doing things in terms of training, mental preparation, nutrition, and everything else. I am convinced that we have to stay in the same state of mind in order to keep working and not change everything. I got the title and I am very happy now that we forget and start again with the same desire, the same attitude and the same state of mind before 2023 after a season of…. .

Le pape-info: Does having a pre-selection of games relieve any stress?

Capital: That was my first goal in 2023 even before the general classification because you don’t need to go through this race for selection that I had before the previous games in Tokyo and Rio which is very stressful. If you need to take a break to prepare properly, I can do that. But I don’t want to think about it too much, I want to be efficient in the first races, I’ll be less efficient later in the season but I’m not going to arrive and tell myself I have to finish 20.^H This will be enough. My goal is to perform well from the beginning of the season. We cannot completely change the level in a few months.

Le pape-info: What do you remember from the Paris test event held last August, a year before the Games?

Capital: The race was amazing, and the place was beautiful with all the historical monuments. The start was at 8am with the sunrise, the crowd was already there, we couldn’t hear ourselves running because we were being shouted at so much. The other international athletes were happy with the race they had and it was really great to be able to experience it before next year. During the Games, the pressure is probably ten times greater, ten times more from the spectators, ten times more from everything, but it allowed us to prepare for it. I approached this race by putting myself in the conditions as if it were next year by insisting on the little details, and I was able to do that and I’m really happy.

Le pape-info: Water quality in the Seine raises questions, during the Paris test event some events were held without swimming

Capital: These are situations we are used to experiencing, we always run in big cities, sometimes we participate in a duathlon or the race gets cancelled. I find it very unfortunate that I have to do a duathlon instead of a triathlon as was the case in Paris (during the mixed relays and paratriathlons) because we are triathletes, we train for triathlons but I have no doubt that Paris 2024 will ensure that the water quality and emergency plan are respected.

Le pape-info: The mixed relay will be eagerly awaited with the French team and will be another challenge to manage after the individual event

Capital: We will have to earn our place, as there will only be two men (and two women), we have already won a medal (bronze) at the Tokyo Games, not the one hoped for after the many world titles we have had before. We’ve had less than impressive results over the past two or three years, and we’ll use that as an advantage by telling ourselves we’re taking a little pressure off. We love running together because we get along very well, and this will be an important moment in the Games. For my part, I will first think only about my individual event, then if I am part of the adventure, I will have 5 days to refocus on the relay, as we are used to working this way in all events where there is a relay.

Dorian Coninx: “We’re not going to invent something on Games Day. If I don’t know how to run at a certain pace, that’s not what I’m going to do on Games Day. I try to reproduce what I do in training in competition and stick to what I can master.”

Le pape-info: What does it mean to be part of this successful French team?

Capital: It is a source of great pride, in the French team, we are all rivals during the race but we all love each other very much and there is a very good understanding. When we arrived and successfully completed the race, it became even more fun, and everyone was in a celebratory mood. At every race this year, whether in Cagliari, Abu Dhabi or Yokohama, I found myself racing with a Frenchman in front of me and another behind me. It’s great even if they are rivals like any other, I want to beat them, to win. Race. After the race we have fun together.

Le Pope-info: With just over 7 months until the Games, is there any excitement or any pressure?

Capital: It’s a combination of a little bit of everything while also focusing on staying focused on the important things, preparing, and not letting myself get burned out by the fact that these are the games. The key word is focus.

Pope’s information: The French national team is subject to scrutiny, and is monitored by other major countries

Capital: Obviously they’re vetting us and better yet, it means we’re competent, then we’re vetting English with Alex Yee and the highly proficient girls, we’re vetting Norwegians, New Zealanders… whatever the world looks like we’re dealing with each other and trying to see what the other does better, It’s sport that allows us to put things into perspective a little bit. I don’t think that by putting the most pressure on yourself, you’ll have the best race, the goal is to arrive as calmly as possible and do what you know how to do. We’re not going to make something up on Games Day. If I don’t know how to run at a certain pace, it’s not a games day I’ll do it, I try to reproduce what I do in training in competition and stick to what I can master.