3 questions to Justine Lemeteyer

20/08/2024

France's Justine Lemeteyer was crowned runner-up in the Slalom X and topped the annual Foil Slalom rankings at the PWA World Tour stopover in Fuerteventura at the end of July. Speaking to Windsurfjournal.com, she looks back on the competition in Sotavento ahead of a decisive second half of the season...

Windsurfjournal.com: Second in the Slalom X in Fuerteventura, runner-up in the World Championship and winner of the foil slalom, what are you most proud of after this event?
Justine Lemeteyer: What I'm most proud of is that I picked myself up after the Pozo Izquierdo event. I learned the hard way how important it is to have the right people around you, and that ruined me mentally during the event in Gran Canaria. I took some time to recharge my batteries with my family and friends, with the aim of arriving in Fuerteventura on top form. So I'm proud to have finally been able to express myself to the full in both fin and foil, to have shown that the hard work over the winter pays off, to have proved to myself what I'm capable of and to have given my sponsors, my coaches and all those who support me some good results. This third vice-world champion title is certainly the one I've enjoyed the most, because of the difficulty I had in winning it. It gave me a lot of emotions at both extremes and that makes it even better.

WJ: In Slalom X, both at Pozo Izquierdo and in Fuerteventura, you've had your ups and downs at times, but with a runner-up title at the end. What did you think of this discipline, which is not so far removed from the slalom as we know it?
JL: I found it very interesting. On the one hand, I think that the spectators appreciated the new features thanks to the live coverage, which was of a very high standard. And as an athlete, I really liked the new problems it brought us. Particularly with the jump, it forced us to work on a new technical element and mentally, it reshuffled the cards. If you crash in the jump in the previous race, you lose confidence when you go back, and I enjoyed these new challenges that we had to manage.

WJ: The foil slalom title is now in your sights... What lessons have you learnt from this event in Fuerteventura, and how do you see the rest of the season?
JL: This leg in Fuerteventura has become my benchmark competition. Everything went really well. My mental management was good, the physique was there, and the equipment worked well. I'll keep in mind everything that was put in place upstream and during this competition, which helped me get to the top on D-Day. There are still two legs on the programme in a variety of conditions and with direct rivals who are also highly motivated. It's going to be a long and beautiful battle, so I'm going to continue to work hard with the team around me to win this title.