(Montreal) Injured twice in the last year, Amélie Kretz did not want to have any regrets in the qualification process for the Paris Olympic Games. On Monday, in her first Olympic distance triathlon in a year, she took 27e rank at the World Cup in Chengdu, China.
Ontarian Dominika Jamnicky was the highest ranked Canadian with her 16e place. The other Canadian registered, Sophia Howell did not finish the 1.5 km swim, 40 km bike and 10 km run.
“It was a difficult day. I have been ill since I arrived in China and after the swim which went well, I no longer had any gas. That’s what dictated the rest of my day,” commented Kretz, who reached the finish line almost 7 minutes behind the winner, Switzerland’s Julie Derron (1:55:18).
Kretz was away from the international scene for several months in 2023. In June, she suffered a stress fracture in her femur. History repeated itself in November, this time at his sacrum. The same month, she retired after the swimming portion of a World Cup in Chile that marked her return to competition.
The 30-year-old athlete therefore knew full well that she was engaged in a race against time if she wanted to become the first Canadian to take part in three editions of the Olympic Games in triathlon.
“I wanted to try my hand. The reality is that I’ve spent almost as much time on crutches as running in the last 12 months, so fitness is just not where it should be at the moment and that’s okay. I need more time, which I don’t have, unfortunately,” she continues, adding that it is especially when running that she lacks speed.
“The last year has been really difficult mentally and I think the rubber band is stretched on that side. (…) I knew that if I didn’t try (to qualify), I was going to regret it. »
Kretz is giving herself a break of 24 to 48 hours before making a decision for the next steps, she who is on the list of registered for the World Cup in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, scheduled for May 18.
The Olympic qualification process will end on May 27. No matter what happens between now and then, the one who ranked 34e at the Rio Games and 15e those in Tokyo remember several things from these last 12 months which have felt like a roller coaster.
“I’m definitely more stubborn than I think. The last few years have proven that the passion I have for my sport is still there and that despite the pitfalls, I have always managed to come back. After the last year, I would have had good reasons to move on and that would have been okay. »
“I still feel like I haven’t reached my full potential and it’s important for me to finish what I started. The years are slowly teaching me to appreciate and be proud of what I have accomplished so far. If you had told me 22 years ago, when I started triathlon, that I would go to two Olympics and travel the world to practice my sport, I wouldn’t have believed it,” she added.
Olympic qualification: the state of play
The Canadian best placed in the Olympic qualification ranking is Quebecer Émy Legault who is at 40e step. Dominika Jamnicky is 62e while Amélie Kretz is 91e in this race where Canada should only obtain one place in the women’s individual event.
Among the men, Tyler Mislawchuk and Charles Paquet are in the best position to obtain their ticket to the Games. The Port-Cartier athlete will, however, have to keep an eye on his compatriot Martin Sobey who is breathing down his neck. The Yokohama stage counting for the World Series, on May 11 in Japan, will be decisive in knowing who will accompany Mislawchuk to the French capital.
reference: www.lapresse.ca