Inès Pastorino is an athlete from Nice specializing in racewalking. In 2015, she was the French champion in the 20km event. At 23 years old, she is affiliated with Nice Côte d’Azur Athlétisme and is part of the French national team.
In an interview she granted us, Inès Pastorino looked back on her end of season marked by a quick return to competition after an injury. She also spoke about her goals for the next season.
And for the little story, she is also responsible for the volunteers of Euro 2016, as she was during the last European Master Games.
Nice Premium: Last May 28th, you competed in the 20 km racewalk in A Coruña. You dropped out. What happened?
Inès Pastorino: I paid the price for the lack of training in recent months. I wanted to achieve a time of 1h40. After 5 kilometers in the race, it became complicated to reach the goal. So I preferred to stop. Obviously, it’s never enjoyable to drop out. But I’m paying for the lack of pace and competition.
Nice Premium: Did this withdrawal affect your end of the season?
Inès Pastorino: Whether I achieved 1h40 or no time, it didn’t change anything for me. I finish my season on that note. Now I am going to train this summer to properly restart in September. The goal was to complete two 20-kilometer races at this end of the season. Unfortunately, I didn’t have enough pace in A Coruña following my injury last winter.
Nice Premium: How do you approach the next season? What are your objectives?
Inès Pastorino: I am going to do a lot of basic training during the winter and some specific work starting in January. There will be a heavy workload to gradually get back into competition rhythm. It’s also about having a very good endurance base to be at my best for the first important events of the season. Incidentally, I will participate in some indoor season races in January, including 3000 meters, to get back into rhythm.
Starting in March, the season really begins with the French 20 kilometers racewalking championships. The most important goal of the next season is the European Racewalking Cup. I will participate in the various events with the intent of performing well.
Having suffered a psoas tear that sidelined her for three and a half months, Inès Pastorino couldn’t qualify for the Rio Olympic Games. She can set a new goal: Tokyo 2020.
