A week after the end of his golden trip to the United States, Kevin Mayer is once again thirsty for gold. “There are not many European Championships in the next few years. I have never been European champion. I am 30 years old, I want to have fun. It’s a great opportunity “, he said during a press briefing by videoconference on Monday.
The athlete had initially claimed to be “99% sure” of not going to Munich, on his return from the United States, citing the “risk of injury” before “the big goals in a year with the Worlds (in Budapest, editor’s note) and the Olympic Games in two years”.
But the desire to “continue the pleasure felt at the World Championships” and the excitement of the “challenge”, with the possibility of an “incredible double” were too great.
“The decathlon is a difficult sport, which requires a lot of recovery. I did not see myself chained (after the decathlon in Eugene, editor’s note), but it turns out that from the second day, I felt that the legs were rather good. I have my chance to be European champion, so I seize it”, detailed the French athlete.
Although he has won the world gold medal in his discipline twice (2017 and 2022), the decathlete has never gleaned continental gold, contenting himself with silver at the European Championships in Zurich. , in 2014.
In Germany, he will only have eyes for the top step of the podium. “Given the level that there is in Europe at the moment (…) I have no margin, but I can afford some poor performance. I am very relaxed.”
– “No risk two years from Paris-2024” –
In addition to a newfound confidence, Mayer will approach “Europe” with “much more serenity”. “What is certain is that I am much more prepared from a technical and physical point of view than before the Worlds, because I had not done any competition.”
The only French medalist at the Worlds in Eugene, Mayer described his title as “unexpected” after “a very complicated year”, marked by Achilles tendon injuries, forcing him to give up the Indoor Worlds in Belgrade in early March. .
The decathlete will gain tenfold attention in Germany. “I won’t take any risks two years from Paris-2024. It’s sure that if I feel a lot of pain, I’m not going to continue saying to myself: I’m doing everything for this European title. Now, if I’m on board in this story, it’s still that I have a certain confidence in my body.”
In Eugene, his success seemed like a deliverance, after several missed appointments, such as his abandonment at the 2019 Worlds in Doha or his decathlon crossed his back blocked at the Tokyo Olympics last summer.
In Munich, Mayer will perform his ten jobs with “less fear than usual because (he) succeeded (his) season”. “I’m going there with a lot more playfulness than usual.”
He will undoubtedly be revengeful after his zero at the length at the European Championships in 2018 in Berlin.
