In the field as well as in human resources management, Trévor Clévenot takes care of everything. Sparkling during the final won by the French volleyball team against Poland (3-0), the receiver-attacker stood out for his sense of sharing on the podium.
Indeed, while the rest of the squad received their precious gold medal and their poster, Timothée Carle, also present on the podium, was only allowed a handshake. In Paris, the Polish club player Jastrzebski was the thirteenth man and coach Andrea Giani never sent him to replace his partners on the pitch.
Faced with this situation, always painful for the lonely athlete, Clévenot, who plays in the same position as Carle, intervened. The 30-year-old volleyball player came down from the podium and removed his medal to place it around his partner's neck, before raising his arms. If the native of Toulon directly returned the piece of metal, he also had his moment of glory in front of the audience at the Arena Paris Sud.
The Bleuets du football had not had the same attention for Théo De Percin. The AJ Auxerre goalkeeper is the only player in Thierry Henry's squad and above all the only reservist not to have tested the French lawns with his crampons during the Olympic football tournament. In the souvenir photos, however, the doorman is not the only one not to wear a charm. Too disappointed with the defeat in the final against Spain (5-3, ap), Michael Olise directly snatched his silver medal.
Mexico had that moment when it stopped its daily life for a peak moment. The moment lasted just over nine minutes in front of the television, computer or cell phone. It was the fight of his champion, of his Olympic medalist, of one of his favorite sports. Marco Verde won a transcendental silver medal in the sports history of Mexico.
It was a fight of high emotional levels. Green, as the Mexican is nicknamed, returned to the ring at the Roland Garros stadium, pampered by a stand that had Mexican overtones. Verde followed the teachings of Radamés Hernández to not lose his head in the first round, although the judges gave Muydinkhujaev better scores. It was not a good omen.
In the second round, the Asian hit so hard, dodging so quickly, that he left Verde nullified. In the last episode, the Mexican came out with all the courage he had saved in the last three years to respond to the Asian. Each punch sought to come back in an almost impossible way as they were disadvantaged in the first rounds.
Marco Verde had a dream tournament. In the round of 16, where the Mexican began competing, he knocked down Tiago Muxanga of Mozambique. In the quarterfinals, the bar that defined whether he was assured of a medal or not, he defeated the Indian Dev Nishant. Despite already having damage after his fights, in the semifinal he defeated the British boxer Lewis Richardson in a great last round.
The president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and the multi-time champion Saúl Canelo Álvarez predicted the best of success for him before the final. Marco Verde's story revives the exploits of boxing in Mexico. Not for nothing is it the second sport that has given the country the most Olympic medals with 13.
Mexico enjoys Paris 2024 with its five medals. First was the bronze thanks to the archery trident that dazzled with its arrows straight to the 10 by Alejandra Valencia, Ana Paula Vázquez and Ángela Ruiz.
