Tokyo Olympics: Robert-Michon eliminated, Bosse miraculé, Lavillenie survivor ... the delicate morning of French athletics

She dreamed of repeating the feat of Rio, where she had won the silver medal.

For her sixth Olympic Games, Mélanie Robert-Michon will have to be content with an express passage on the discus throw area.

The Lyonnaise could not do better than a better throw at 60.88m, far from her best performance of the season, measured at 65.30m, and even further from her personal best at 66.73m, synonymous France record, set five years ago in Brazil.

13th at the end of the qualifications, she fails a place in the final.

Like her, other Blues sank in the heat of the Olympic stadium.

Starting with the 100 m hurdles specialists, injured.

Hit in a knee three weeks ago in training, Laura Valette struggled to finish her race, an anecdotal 8th place.

"There are inevitably a lot of disappointments, I have worked very hard for many years to be strong here ... It's the law of sport but it's not easy", she admitted, in tears, at the microphone. from France Télévisions.

As for Cyréna Samba-Mayela, French Elite champion, she did not even start her series, affected during the warm-up.

🏃 Hit in the knee, the French hurdler Laura Valette could not defend her chances in the 100m hurdles series: she was eliminated # Tokyo2020 #Olympic

Games Follow the Olympics live ▶ https://t.co/Tki3Gsq4BI pic.twitter .com / R7y0j5H1zj

- France tv sport (@francetvsport) July 31, 2021

Big fear for Lavillenie, miraculous bump

Another captain of the France team trembled, in the person of Renaud Lavillenie.

Barely recovered from a sprained ankle, contracted less than three weeks ago, the pole vaulter came close to the correctional at 5.50 m, crossing this bar on the third attempt.

The Clermontois finally recovered well, crossing 5.75 m on his first attempt.

Enough to go to the final.

His teammates and training partners, Valentin Lavillenie and Ethan Cormont, did not have the same success, respectively 17th and 22nd in qualifying, with 5.65 m and 5.50 m.

Their Olympics end there.

And then, Pierre-Ambroise Bosse was scared.

After leading for a good part of the race, he finally stuck in the home stretch and finished sixth in his heat in 1′45 ″ 97.

"PAB" obtains the sixth and last qualifying ticket on time for the semi-finals.

It goes more easily for Gabriel Tual, 3rd in 1′45 ″ 63, and directly qualified.

On the other hand, it is over for Benjamin Robert, 21, fifth in his series in 1′47 ″ 12.

Entered this Saturday afternoon, Jimmy Vicaut in the 100m heats, Augustin Bey in the long jump qualifications and finally Rénelle Lamote in the 800m semi-finals, will try to reverse the trend.