In-form Mazella chasing home Olympic dream

The chance to compete at a home Olympics is not offered to every elite athlete, even less so when competition is taking place an hour from where you grew up. So while Axel Mazella is doing everything within his power not to think about Paris 2024, the Frenchman admits it is not easy. Ad Leading the way in the Formula Kite Men at the Allianz Regatta through two days of competition, Mazella is one of a strong French contingent looking to nab the lone spot on the host team in Marseille next year.

SailingUusitalo hits the front on intriguing second day at Allianz Regatta2 HOURS AGO Having grown up in Hyères, just an hour up the coast, Mazella has been kitesurfing since 2010, picking up foiling three years later. Now that kitefoiling has been added to the Olympic programme for Paris, the pressure has ramped up — not least because of the sheer number of people fighting for one spot. Mazella explained: «It's super exciting to be part of this story because it's a new Olympic class.

In our country, we have a really strong French team in the men's team and in the women's. »In the top ten men, we have four Frenchies and in the women, it's three or four as well. So it's pretty intense and we know we have to be first to qualify for the Olympics.

It's pretty tough and pretty exciting. Because we are all together and super tight, we have to push as hard as possible so we are all growing together. «Honestly, I'm not thinking about the Olympics, even though it's in France and I know all my family will be there if I qualify.