On Friday evening, the grand and exceptional opening ceremony of the Olympic Games will take place in Paris. We will all remember it thanks to the fact that the center of Paris and the Seine River flowing through the city will be the focus of the events. And Anita W³odarczyk will certainly remember it especially well.
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– First of all, I’m happy to be here. This is my fifth Olympic Games and I think it will be the last one, because – let’s be honest – the years are flying by and I don’t think I’ll last until Los Angeles. [tam odbędą się kolejne igrzyska, w 2028 roku]. Although I won’t be finishing my career after the Paris Olympics. I can’t wait for the opening ceremony, then I will definitely feel that the games have begun – says Włodarczyk.
On Friday, the three-time Olympic hammer throw champion took the Olympic oath at the Polish House in the Bois de Boulogne, which opened that day. And in the evening, an even bigger and more important ceremony awaits her.
– The only time I attended the opening ceremony was during my first games, in Beijing in 2008. It was a special day for me, my birthday, August 8. I won’t hide the fact that I once dreamed of leading the Polish national team. It’s an incredible honor and pride that Przemek and I will represent our country with dignity. I’m a sensitive person, this means a lot to me. Such ceremonies always carry me. I hope that these games will be successful for our entire team – says Włodarczyk.
Anita Włodarczyk is supposed to break the curse
Our track and field star is happy that after the pandemic Olympics in Tokyo (2021) everything has returned to normal and there will be fans in the Olympic arenas again. – I watched photos from the Olympic stadium from the rugby matches. It warms my heart that the stadium was already full. I love competing in front of a huge audience, I remember the audience in Beijing, where the stadium held almost 100,000 people. It was a bit too much for me then, I wasn’t ready for something like that yet, but now I’m the type of athlete that the atmosphere in the stands carries me away. And I won’t hide the fact that I miss such emotions – she says.
During the oath ceremony at the Polish House, the president of the Polish Olympic Committee, Radosław Piesiewicz, wished Anita Włodarczyk to win her fourth gold medal at the Games and thus show that there is no standard-bearer’s curse.
For years, superstitious fans and athletes have been saying that whoever carries the Polish flag at the opening ceremony of the games will later have bad luck and will not win a medal. The last standard-bearer of our team to stand on the Olympic podium was Waldemar Legien in 1992 (gold in judo). Włodarczyk believes that he will fight for a medal in Paris, although this year he is only 18th. Result in the world.
– First of all, I am healthy. I am happy that I trained in good health throughout the entire preparation period. I am ready to fight, I would like to win a medal. I know it will be very difficult, but I always set the bar high and I will definitely fight – she assures.
– I don’t have to show or prove anything to anyone anymore. It’s great that I don’t have that kind of pressure. I can’t imagine a situation where these would be my last Olympics and I wouldn’t have a medal yet, especially a gold one. Luckily, I’m not in that situation, so I’ll compete with a smile on my face – she adds.
Włodarczyk estimates that a medal will require throwing over 76 m. This year, her best result is 72.92 m. Does Włodarczyk throw that much in training? “No,” she replies briefly and honestly. “But I’m not a training athlete,” she smiles.
Tower, baguette and croissant. These will be Polish-Parisian nails
Włodarczyk had no training or rather rehearsals for the role of ensign. “I haven’t even had the opportunity to meet Przemek yet. We’ll go with the flow, I’m not afraid of challenges,” we hear. “I just hope the barge doesn’t sink because of my weight,” laughs Włodarczyk.
For her, as for us and the viewers, many things remain a mystery before the ceremony. – I have no idea what it will look like, because the ceremonies have always been at the stadium. There will definitely be a lot of barges here. It’s a great idea that we went out to the people, to the city – says Włodarczyk.
She herself is only going to go out into the city after her start. First I will prepare my nails for the competition[thiscanbedoneinthebeautysalonintheOlympicVillageasalwayswhiteandredbutnowwithParisianaccents:withtheEiffelTowersomebaguetteorcroissantBecausethat’swhatI’mwaitingforinParistogoforanespressoandacroissantafterthestart-endsAnitaWłodarczyk[możnatozrobićwsaloniepięknościwwiosceolimpijskiejjakzawszebiało-czerwonealeterazzparyskimiakcentami:zwieżąEifflajakaśbagietkaalbocroissantBonatoczekamwParyżużebypostarciepójśćnaespressoicroissanta–kończyAnitaWłodarczyk
