France's top diver experienced an embarrassing and painful moment during the venue's first event, which will host diving, swimming and water polo at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.
Alexis Gendart was killed Thursday when she tried to remove a spring from a 33-foot-tall board while French President Emmanuel Macron was in attendance at the new Olympic Aquatic Center. He slipped and fell backwards, hitting his back on the board and falling. into the water.
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Understandably embarrassed, Janyard joked about the incident on social media and French television, while thanking fans for their support.
“By the way, my back is fine, but my ego…” he joked about x (Formerly known as Twitter).
Janiyad, 26, shared photos of the welts and scrapes on her lower back from the fall, but escaped serious injury and continues to train.
“I collapsed in front of the president. I collapsed in front of the whole of France,” Gendart said in an Instagram Story. “I've broken boards before, but boards have never broken me. Now they have.”
“I wanted this ceremony to go well from start to finish,” he added. “I just had a little problem. If it makes people smile a little bit, then that's great.”
Gendart won silver and bronze medals for France, the 2022 and 2023 World Championships, and competed at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He is expected to win a gold medal in his home country.
The Paris Olympics will open on July 26th and run until August 11th.
