Quentin, in what state of mind are you approaching this season?
Quentin Fillon-Maillet:
This beautiful Olympic season (smile). I hope she will be brilliant. Each season I try to prepare as well as possible, but this year even more because there is this ultimate goal of being an Olympic champion. I've been thinking about it for four years, waiting for this moment. So this is really something that is close to my heart. However, I try not to overdo it either, nor to invent something to get this title. I try to be rational and put in place what can work, with my qualities and my weaknesses. And with this in mind,the World Cup circuit will take a back seat by using life-size preparation to arrive in Beijing as fit as possible.
When we see your consistency for three seasons, with your many podiums, it seems inconceivable not to see you at least once on the box in Beijing ...
That's what I say to myself too, I try to reassure myself in this feel it. But I have to be an actor too to create this medal, and not wait for things to happen just because my last three seasons were good. Today, I can't hide from my results. I brought back five medals during the three Worlds that took place after the 2018 Games, I finished third in the general classification of the World Cup three times in a row so obviously, this gives me legitimate ambitions, which I fully assume. .
You mention these three consecutive third places in the general classification of the World Cup. Concretely, what do you need to finish one or two notches higher?
Already, I have very strong opponents. It is a parameter that I do not control, the performance of others. Now I try to improve myself and I don't set limits for myself. Or rather, I don't care about it anymore. Four or five years ago, I spoke with my coaches and asked them what I could do to get the best skiers. I wondered about my ability to compete with a Johannes Boe on skis. At first glance, it seemed impossible to me and the answer seemed simple: physiologically, I did not have the capacity to do it. But in the end, I did not give up and by being ingenious and hard-working, it allowed me to progress and to be one of the best skiers today. I'm not at the level of a Boe, but II am very close to it and with the shooting factor, by reducing the gap on the skis, I open my perspectives.
I am not accountable to anyone other than my close team with whom I work all year round.
And even…
Quentin Fillon-Maillet
It will be the first Games without Martin Fourcade, which will propel you into full light. Is it additional pressure?
No, I realized that I do sports above all for myself. I am not accountable to anyone other than my close team with whom I work all year round. And again… I do all this for my pleasure, because biathlon is a passion for me. It allows me to detach myself from the pressure that may be around. Now I am not naive and I know that I will be expected. But the pressure, as I'm very demanding of myself, I'm already putting it on myself. When I do a race, even before looking at my ranking, I always check whether I have validated the objectives I had set for myself. Am I happy with my race? Only then I see if it matches well with my result. The idea is not just to want to win. That,Everyone can do it. The most important thing is what do I put in place to win? It is very sharp as an analysis. And if at the end of the race, I achieved 100% of my goals on the skis, on the shooting range, on my concentration, there is often a good chance that this will allow me to finish very high. So my biggest opponent is often myself.
Does this mean that you manage to detach yourself completely from the gaze of others?
No, not totally.
Of course, when I hear the crowd screaming during the shooting at Le Grand-Bornand, it's hard to think that I'm only there for myself.
We can feel the urge and the stress on the rise.
We cannot detach ourselves from all of this.
Quentin Fillon-Maillet Panoramic
You talk about the atmosphere. In Beijing, there will either be no public, or only a Chinese public with little knowledge of biathlon. Is this a concern for you?
A little, but not that much since we have the experience of last season almost exclusively behind closed doors. We knew how to manage it. There will only be a disappointment not to have our loved ones there. Suddenly, the emotions may be less strong, because we will not be able to share them.
Are you worried about the health rules which promise to be very strict in China, over a period, fifteen days, longer than that which you know on a traditional World Cup stage?
Yes, on certain points. I think, for example, that it will be difficult to go running outside the site. We don't just do ski training and jogging is an integral part of our preparation. If we only have to run in the Olympic Village it will be frustrating but we will have to adapt. The biggest worry, of course, will be not to get sick at the wrong time because in Tokyo, we saw how complicated it seemed for those who found themselves placed in quarantine.
Did you speak with French athletes present in Tokyo?
Yes, I have had feedback from some.
They told me about their experiences and I have the feeling that it looks like what we experienced last season in the World Cup.
We spent a lot of time indoors, without going out too much.
But I saw in this an opportunity to be even more professional and focused while avoiding any outside distraction.
At these Games, the goal for me will really be to bring home a gold medal.
If I succeed, health bubble or not, the Games will be perfect, believe me (smile).
