That Thursday at the end of March, Romain Cannone was light-hearted. All smiles, the Tokyo Olympic champion in epee tries his hand at the paratriathlon among a good hundred students, during an event organized by one of his sponsors, EDF, in Liévin ( Hauts-de-France). The previous weekend, he had won his first individual World Cup victory of the season in Tbilisi.
A release, after months of tension between the swordsmen and their general manager Hugues Obry, which had pushed Cannone and his teammates Yannick Borel and Alexandre Bardenet to leave Insep to train on their own. Obry was finally disembarked at the beginning of March, and if the fencers have not (yet?) reintegrated into the federal fold, the situation seems to have calmed down a little. It was about time, with the Paris Olympics fast approaching, where French fencers aim for nothing other than gold.
We are a little less than four months away from the Olympics now… Not too difficult to realize?
We feel like it’s happening quickly now. I realize with my calendar, there are only two World Cup rounds left [Cali le 3 mai puis Saint-Maur le 17 mai] to qualify. We feel the tension almost everywhere, between those who had a good season, those who are not far behind, those who have fallen behind… It all gives a special atmosphere. Afterwards, we try to ignore everything that comes out in Paris because there are too many things, it will put unnecessary pressure. We need pressure to succeed, but it will be there naturally on the big day, no need to add to it.
Have these three years since your title in Tokyo passed quickly?
Super fast! And at the same time, a season is long and exhausting. After my Olympic title, I became world champion and it wasn’t easy to get motivated again. However, the Paris 2024 objective had not changed, it was still there, but each season is so intense that you have to find within yourself what you need to move forward, always. But when I look at these three years, I tell myself that it has gone by at lightning speed.
Are you within the desired transition times in your preparation?
We have a lot of competitions going on at the moment, which is good, it allows us to make adjustments. I have two left, I have to do very well, for my confidence, to tell myself that I did a good job. The hardest part isn’t the in-depth work, it’s the small adjustments leading up to the Games.
Have you returned to train at Insep?
No.
Are you going to come back?
It’s in negotiations, we’ll say. For now, since September, it’s Saint-Maur. I came back once, on Thursday, where I did the assault session. Because there is still a team. Me, my best friends, they are in a team in France, they are part of the group at Insep. I’m sad to have left them, it’s not what I wanted.
Is the victory in Tbilisi, after these difficult months, a relief?
It’s exactly that. A breath of air, on my project, to tell me that I work well, that I still have this ability to win. Telling the media and sponsors is one thing, but proving it to yourself is another. It did a lot of good for my head, my morale, and it gives me energy to go back to training.
Does it also mean that things are improving with your Federation?
I use my joker on this one (smile).
More generally, is this situation a source of extra motivation, to show that you are the best despite everything, or is it burdensome?
It really doesn’t matter what the situation is, what’s in your way, and that’s what’s great about sport, by the way. To reach the highest level, everyone has had holes in their path, and what makes great champions is that they don’t stop. I am in that spirit. No matter the situation, whether it improves or not, my goal is to move forward, to progress. And that has to come from you, no one can bring it to you.
With Yannick Borel and Alexandre Bardenet, have you found a way of working until the Olympics that suits you?
(He thinks for a long time) Maybe it will change, maybe not. It doesn’t matter in fact, there are three of us athletes who have made up the French team over the last three years, it’s us who have made podiums for France. We stay in this philosophy, no matter what happens, we have to deal with it, move forward, want to win more than anything else, even if everything doesn’t go well. I manage to ignore the external environment to perform. In Tbilisi, it’s a good example for me.
Was your preparation for the Games what you wanted?
(He hesitates) No, because if it had the one I wanted from the start, I wouldn’t have had to ask for so many meetings, we wouldn’t have wasted less time on certain points, which made me reconsider. question my training. On the other hand, it’s my adventure, my path, I wanted to be master of my project, and not suffer something and then regret not having taken matters into my own hands.
Did the words of President Brigitte Saint-Bonnet, who called for appeasement after your speech, reassure you?
I am waiting to see how things are progressing.
Has there been anything concrete since then?
(He shakes his head no)
Are you ready to work with Gauthier Grumier?
I think all three of us are ready to work with Gauthier, under the right conditions. I don’t want to speak for everyone, but I think that in all cases, and this is what we have shown from the beginning, me, Yanick and Alexandre are one, because we have the same objective: train together, hard and the right way. What makes the France team strong is the team. The fact that Yannick, who has competed in the Games several times, passes on his experience, that Alexandre, who is younger, gives his all behind you and pushes you. And to come back to the question of whether the situation is what we wanted, it didn’t allow us to pull ourselves up from the start, but I hope that now we can do it until the Games.
Is there a date from which you will say “now we no longer change, we will go until the Games like this”?
It’s a bit complicated to answer. It has to be positive for the future, in any case.
Would you like to be a flag bearer at the Olympics?
Do I think about it, no, but would it be an honor, definitely. It would be a huge privilege. I’m not someone who shows off, I don’t consider myself a great leader, but an athlete who works very hard for his dreams. If it can help others, this philosophy… I’ve never been asked this question, but it would be more than an honor. Given my story, my adventure, it would be a great apotheosis.
You must apply to your Federation if you want to be…
Ah good ? They didn’t really keep me informed about it all. (smile). But it would be nice. Can you send me the link? (laughs)