APITHY Bolade

General
LONE MALE SABRIST IN TOKYO
After the failure of the French men's sabre team to qualify for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, he will be the nation's sole male sabre representative at the Games in Tokyo. Prior to the postponement of the Games he was not sure if he wanted to continue competing for another Olympic cycle, but after the postponement of the Games in Tokyo he said he plans to continue fencing through to the 2024 Games in Paris. "The qualifications for the 2024 Games in Paris will start quite soon after the postponed Games [in Tokyo], so I said to myself 'Why not? I'm physically fit, let's continue the adventure and see if I can finish up in Paris.'" (francebleu.fr, 15 Mar 2021)

CURSE LIFTED
He was disappointed with his performance at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, where he placed 18th in individual sabre, and then did not compete at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro. After seeing an improvement in his results in 2018, he secured his first World Cup Grand Prix victory in May 2019 and stated that he hoped it could be a turning point in his career. "It feels like all the work is finally paying off. It was a difficult time for me after the 2012 Olympics through to Rio in 2016. I didn't feel good about my fencing, and things didn't feel right with my coaches. Sometimes when results don't come your way, doubts set in. In 2018, I had a big season but couldn't make it pay off at the European championships. Since then, I've done a lot of work with a new support team. This [Grand Prix] victory gives me a lot of confidence, I think it shows that the curse has been lifted." (lequipe.fr, 25 May 2019; fencing.net, 22 Feb 2013)

BENIN BROTHER
After failing to qualify for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, he focused on coaching his brother Yemi, who represented Benin at the Games in Rio. Their father is from Benin and the brothers have dual nationality. Bolade says there was never any doubt he would represent France. "For me it was simple. I was born in France, I've always lived in France, and I came up the ranks here. When I graduated to the senior level, I continued with the French team and have had good results ever since, so I've never seen a reason to change country." (bienpublic.com, 01 Aug 2016; pianetascherma.com, 20 Feb 2016)

SUSPENSION
In 2013 at a World Cup event in Padua, Italy, he threw his sabre to the ground in frustration at his performance, resulting in a black card and expulsion from the competition. He was subsequently suspended for two months by the International Fencing Federation [FIE], causing him to miss tournaments in Budapest, Hungary, and Moscow, Russian Federation. (france3-regions.blog.francetvinfo.fr, 22 Feb 2013; fencing.net, 22 Feb 2013)