At the opening of the aquatics center for the 2024 Paris Olympics, a French international diver embarrassed himself in front of President Emmanuel Macron on Friday by falling off the diving board and into the water.
The two-time world championship minor medallist Alexis Jandard has received a lot of positive feedback on social media for his brave decision to laugh at his own bad luck rather than cowering down in silence.
Jandard, performing a synchronised routine on the 3 metre board with two other divers during the ceremony, lost his footing while jumping, landed painfully on the board on his back and bottom and then splashed into the water.
Ca c'est de l'inauguration FFL qui inaugure. pic.twitter.com/sw00CZSJhn
— Fédé 🇫🇷 de la Lose (@FFLose) April 4, 2024
“I am fine really! It’s superficial although it looks impressive on the images,” Jandard told BFMTV after waking up to discover Thursday’s mishap had become a viral meme overnight.
“The fall was ridiculous… it’s part of the game. If I look at the fall it’s funny.
“It’s something that happens to us in diving — not regularly but it’s not surprising. It happens in training sometimes, in competition. But there it was in front of the president during the inauguration of the pool. I told myself it was the worst moment!”
He said he had received a message from the president and the Minister of Sports Amelie Oudea-Castera had phoned him to ensure all was well.
“To get on the podium is the clear objective,” he continued in reference to the Olympics.
In a video posted to Instagram on Thursday night, Jandard was all smiles as he acknowledged that he had “fallen in front of the president of the republic, in front of all of France” and gave his fans a “little debrief.”
“Have a laugh at me, because frankly I deserve it,” he replied.
Jandard is scheduled to participate in the 3-meter synchronized event in Paris.
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