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| APITHY Bolade |
| NOC |
France
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| Gender | Men |
| Born |
21 Aug 1985
in Dijon, FRA
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| Height | 1.80 m |
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General Interest |
| Other information |
FENCING COUPLE
He married fellow French sabre fencer Manon Apithy-Brunet in 2021. The couple trained for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris together at the Christian Bauer Academy in Orleans, France. "We love each other, and when you are happy in your life outside of sport, it's easier to do well on the piste. We're both on the same wavelength, which provides daily support and motivation. When one of us is struggling, the other can always help because we've both been in the same position at some point." (olympics.com, 08 Dec 2023)
LAST GAMES IN PARIS
After the failure of the French men's sabre team to qualify for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, he was the nation's sole male sabre representative at the 2020 Games. Prior to the postponement of the Games he was not sure if he wanted to continue competing for another Olympic cycle. "The qualifications for the 2024 Games in Paris will start quite soon after the postponed Games [in Tokyo], so I said to myself, 'Why not? I'm physically fit, let's continue the adventure and see if I can finish up in Paris'. Every Games can be your last, personally I don't think I will do another four years, I can't see myself going to Los Angeles, so there's a strong chance these will be my last Games." (france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr, 07 Dec 2023; francebleu.fr, 15 Mar 2021)
RIO 2016 COACH
He was disappointed with his performance at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, where he placed 18th in individual sabre. After failing to qualify for the 2016 Olympic Games, he focused on coaching his brother Yemi, who represented Benin at the Games in Rio de Janeiro. Their father is from Benin and the brothers have dual nationality. Bolade always wanted to represent France. "For me it was simple. I was born in France, I've always lived in France, and I came up the ranks here. When I graduated to the senior level, I continued with the French team and have had good results ever since, so I've never seen a reason to change country." After seeing an improvement in his results in 2018, he secured his first World Cup Grand Prix victory in May 2019. "It feels like all the work is finally paying off. It was a difficult time for me after the 2012 Olympics through to Rio in 2016. I didn't feel good about my fencing, and things didn't feel right with my coaches. Sometimes when results don't come your way, doubts set in. In 2018, I had a big season but couldn't make it pay off at the European championships. Since then, I've done a lot of work with a new support team. This [Grand Prix] victory gives me a lot of confidence, I think it shows that the curse has been lifted." (lequipe.fr, 25 May 2019; bienpublic.com, 01 Aug 2016; pianetascherma.com, 20 Feb 2016; fencing.net, 22 Feb 2013) |
Further Personal Information |
| Occupation |
Athlete |
General Interest |
| Ambitions |
To compete at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. (francebleu.fr, 15 Mar 2021) |
Further Personal Information |
| Residence |
Orléans, FRA |
| Family |
Wife Manon Apithy-Brunet |
Sport Specific Information |
| Training Regime |
In December 2023 he said his training in preparation for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris would focus on explosiveness. "Everything is aimed at being ready to perform on 27 July [at the 2024 Olympic Games]. Everything else [this season] is secondary. For the moment, I'm doing a lot of work to keep my explosiveness. At my age [38], this is something that can start to fade the fastest, so I must practise it to keep performing." |
General Interest |
| Nicknames |
Biboun (olympics.com, 08 Dec 2023) |
Sport Specific Information |
| Club / Team |
Cercle d'Escrime Orleanais: France |
Further Personal Information |
| Higher education |
Sports Management - National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance [INSEP]: Paris, FRA |
Sport Specific Information |
| Why this sport? |
At age six he saw a photo of fencing in a magazine and told his parents he wanted to try the sport. |
General Interest |
| Hero / Idol |
Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt. (sport-web.fr, 07 Jun 2011) |
Sport Specific Information |
| Name of coach |
Christian Bauer [club], FRA; Alain Coicaud [national], FRA |
| Handedness |
Right |
| When and where did you begin this sport? |
He began fencing at age six at the ASPTT Dijon club in France. He chose to focus on sabre from age 13. |
Further Personal Information |
| Languages |
English, French |
General Interest |
| Famous relatives |
His brother Yemi has represented Benin in fencing, and competed at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. His wife Manon Apithy-Brunet has represented France in fencing, and won silver in team sabre and bronze in individual sabre at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (SportsDeskOnline, 14 Apr 2022; leprogres.fr, 23 Oct 2021) |
| Sporting philosophy / motto |
"At a high level, it is sometimes forgotten that fencing remains, above all, fun." (lejsl.com, 09 May 2015) |
| Awards and honours |
In 2016 he received the Medal of the City of Dijon in France. (k6fm.com, 28 Sep 2016) |
| World Championships |
| 2023 |
4 |
Team Sabre |
Milan, Italy |
| 2022 |
5 |
Team Sabre |
Cairo, Egypt |
| 2018 |
Final 7-8 |
Team Sabre |
Wuxi, China |
| 2017 |
7 |
Team Sabre |
Leipzig, Germany |
| European Championships |
| 2024 |
5 |
Individual Sabre |
Basel, Switzerland |
| 2024 |
Final 7-8 |
Team Sabre |
Basel, Switzerland |
| 2023 (Team) |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Kraków, Poland |
| 2023 (Individua |
Quarterfinal |
Individual Sabre |
Plovdiv, Bulgaria |
| 2022 |
3 |
Individual Sabre |
Antalya, Turkey |
| 2022 |
4 |
Team Sabre |
Antalya, Turkey |
| 2019 |
5 |
Team Sabre |
Düsseldorf, Germany |
| 2019 |
Quarterfinal |
Individual Sabre |
Düsseldorf, Germany |
| 2018 |
Final 5-6 |
Team Sabre |
Novi Sad, Serbia |
| 2017 |
Final 7-8 |
Team Sabre |
Tbilisi, Georgia |
| 2013 |
6 |
Team Sabre |
Zagreb, Croatia |
| 2012 |
2 |
Individual Sabre |
Legnano, Italy |
| 2011 |
2 |
Individual Sabre |
Sheffield, England |
| 2010 |
3 |
Individual Sabre |
Leipzig, Germany |
| 2010 |
5 |
Team Sabre |
Leipzig, Germany |
| 2009 |
3 |
Team Sabre |
Plovdiv, Bulgaria |
| 2008 |
2 |
Team Sabre |
Kiev, Ukraine |
| 2006 |
5 |
Team Sabre |
Izmir, Turkey |
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