| In less than a week, the Olympic Games will begin in Tokyo. The mere fact it is taking place is both a monumental triumph of the human spirit and an ongoing cause for concern. It will commence, as always, with an Opening Ceremony full of pageantry, performance and celebration. And, amid it all, will be an athlete carrying his nation’s flag whose life reads like a movie. Samir Ait Said is a French gymnast. If you cannot instantly recall his name it is quite likely you’ll remember what happened to him five summers ago, in the qualifying round of the men’s team competition at the Rio Olympics. As he landed his vault, a crack sounded throughout the arena, the result of a devastating injury. Ait Said’s tibia and fibula had shattered upon impact, his foot and the bottom part of his shin hanging grotesquely separate from the rest of his leg. |
As medical staff rushed to his aid, the stadium fell silent. There is something about seeing an athlete’s body unnaturally broken in such a graphic way that truly horrifies us to our core. To see it, is to remember it forever. It happened with Joe Theismann, Kevin Ware, and in more recent times, Dak Prescott. When Ait Said suffered his terrible fate, I was a couple of miles away from the Arena Olimpica de Rio, covering the Games for a former employer. While media outlets around the world reported on the basics of what happened and the gruesome nature of the injury, I went in search of more information about the young man who had instantly garnered the world’s sympathy. As it turned out, the leg break was just a tiny part of a tale that was remarkable, heartbreaking and ultimately victorious. The first bit to get unearthed was that the terrifying injury was not the last blow of indignity Ait Said was to suffer that day. After being taken from the competition floor toward a waiting ambulance, the volunteers carrying him dropped the stretcher. Thankfully, it did not cause further damage. After being treated at the hospital, he captured even more hearts with a video posted from his bedside, vowing to come back and win gold in Tokyo. “Injury always comes at some point in a career,” Ait Said recently told Le Figaro. “Well, maybe not as violent (an injury) as mine. I have zero pressure. What would that be for me? I have already experienced the Olympics where I missed a medal because of a serious injury. What’s the worst that can happen to me?” The deeper you look into Ait Said’s tale, the more extraordinary it becomes. On the night of his Rio disaster, it was revealed that four years earlier, when trying to qualify for the London Olympics, he had suffered the same injury – to his other leg. “It was two months before London and it was the same thing,” French gymnastics writer Anouk Corge told me. “It was on a vault, he landed, and the leg broke in the same way. It was terrible then and for it to happen again is traumatic.” After Rio, Ait Said fought to make an incredible comeback. No one expected much from him but he made the World Championship 14 months later and somehow got his way into contention in the rings event, only to finish fourth, .008 of a point out of the podium places. In gymnastics’ convoluted scoring system, such a margin is infinitesimal, the equivalent of a runner missing out by half the width of a fingernail at the end of a marathon. He was encouraged, however, and redoubled his efforts. He heard the doubting voices, those in the sport who questioned whether he could ever fully regain his confidence and leg strength, yet plowed on regardless. “The more I heard that I was finished, the more it motivated me,” he said. He knew the Tokyo campaign would be a lonely pursuit after France failed to qualify a full men’s team, but his focus narrowed to one of the individual events. In 2019 there was a breakthrough, with a rings bronze at worlds, yet it was tinged with sadness. His father, his greatest supporter, who had been there at Rio and had urged his son never to give up, had passed away the previous winter with lung cancer. “After Rio, my dad said he would be there in Tokyo,” Ait Said said. “I will give everything to win that medal for him.” Who knows how this story ends for Ait Said. A gold in Tokyo would almost be too perfect, wouldn’t it? Present a script that fanciful and Hollywood execs will laugh you out of their office. But it’s his life and it’s a real one. It is hard to think of a more deserving flag bearer among those who will parade their nation’s emblem around the stadium next week. When Ait Said was chosen to receive the honor of carrying the French Tricolore, he received glowing tributes from his country’s Olympic officials. As part of the presentation announcing the decision to select Ait Said, his Tokyo campaign was described as “the latest steps in a beautiful journey.” The French really do have a way with words, don’t they. But these ones were right, and the journey’s not over yet. Here’s what others have said … Anthony Khoury, GiveMeSport.com: “The Olympic Games have produced some of the most iconic sports moments in history. From eternal glory to heartbreak at the final hurdle, the Games never cease to amaze. But unfortunately, the competitive edge that comes with the world’s most popular sporting event also results in athletes sustaining quite painful injuries that, like a memorable triumph, live long in the memories of both fans and athletes.” Cyril Tommasone, French Gymnast: “It was very difficult, very emotional. It’s very hard for the French and for him. Very difficult.” |
