Long jump and sprint specialist, Valentin Bertrand (27), has already taken part twice in the Paralympic Games. He can’t wait to experience these 2023 Worlds in Paris, before the big party in 2024.
The winter season is starting for you. How is your comeback going?
Valentin Bertrand : I am currently training with the French team in Clermont-Ferrand. This weekend, we are taking part in the X-Athletics meeting in Aubière. It will be my first competition of the year. The idea of trying new things, seeing how what we worked on in training can be applied on the track. I can not wait to be there. This winter, it was a well-muscled preparation, with a good workload. Now I train in Amsterdam. We did internships, especially in Tenerife, to get the sun. We see the changes in training, and I hope it will pay off in competition.
Are you still lining up for length and sprint events?
VB : The priority is rather the length, but the two go hand in hand. The sprint helps me for the length. At X-Athletics, I focus on the long jump. This is where I want to perform above all else. On the 100m, it will be more complicated. For me and my coach, it’s more of a challenge. The objective of going to qualify for the Paris Worlds in sprint is a small challenge that we are launching in addition.
“A small medal at home would be very nice! »
Precisely, what are your sporting objectives for the next Para-Athletics World Championships?
VB : The goal is to do even better than last time when I finished 5e. In all honesty, I’m aiming for a podium. It would be a great reward, to prove that the work of all these years has paid off. The goal is also to rub shoulders with the world elite as the Games approach. A small medal at home would be very nice!
These Worlds promise to be a great celebration of para-athletics and disabled sports in France: do you feel that the excitement is starting to rise?
VB : Having the world championships at home is great. It is an additional motivation for us athletes. My first international competition was already in France, in Lyon for the 2013 Worlds. Already at that time, there was a good atmosphere and it was a very nice party. I saw the first posters in Paris, we feel that it is coming! With an audience there, it can be a great aperitif before the great feast of the Paralympic Games. A little “before” before the big fireworks.
“To show that high-level sport and disability are compatible”
Can disabled sport in general take advantage of these Worlds, as the Games approach?
VB : Totally. These Worlds will be important to create enthusiasm for 2024, to already better follow the athletes that the public will find a year later at the Olympics. This is an opportunity for us to show a beautiful image of disabled sport, with discussion, sharing, surpassing oneself… Disabled sport is all that. For 10 years, things have changed, I felt it. According to the testimonies of other more experienced athletes, the founding stone is London 2012. Mentalities change, the public gets used to it and evolves. We have more and more spectators, and the Games are a great showcase to show that high-level sport and disability are compatible.
After having experienced the Rio and Tokyo Olympics, do we want to experience Paris 2024 at home even more?
VB : In Tokyo, with covid and all the restrictions, it was very special. We missed the fervor of the public. In any case, personally, I really missed it. I can’t wait to experience communion with a full stadium that we can experience in 2024, with a concrete preview already this summer. There is no more beautiful.
How is the rest of your season going?
VB : After the X-Athletics, I will be at a meeting in Dubai at the end of February. In winter, I would have some competitions in France. Ditto to start the summer, with three or four gatherings. The Worlds will come very quickly, we will be ready.