Proust Questionnaire, Gymnastics Style
Gymnast interview : Born in Québec, Canada in 2000, William joined the national team as a senior in 2018. He took part to the 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2023 World Championships and finished 8th in the All Around final in Kitakyushu, marking the best result for a Canadian male gymnast in World Championship history. He also qualified to the Rings and Vault finals. In Antwerp, he helped Team Canada qualify in 4th position and win a ticket to the 2024 Olympics, a first since 2008. Being part of this exciting Canadian team is both a great honor and a fantastic personal achievement.
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
I think it’s having a perfect balance between my professional and my personal life one. I’m the happiest when I perform at my best in sport, but I can also enjoy the little things that life can provide and be present for the people that I love
What is your greatest fear?
To disappoint people that I care about or not being present when they need help
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
My self-doubt. I can be a dominant gymnast but my worst enemy is actually myself. I’ve been working on this and I will still need to do so the future
Which talent would you most like to have?
To be able to cook really well. I’ve still got time to learn I guess
When and where were you happiest?
When we qualified the Canadian team for the Paris Olympic Games was the most incredible moment in my life! All the work in the past 15 years was for that moment
What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
When you’re stuck in a situation that you put yourself in and it’s impossible to get out of it (I’m thinking about drug addiction mostly)
What is it that you most dislike?
Disrespectful, entitled and egocentric people
What is your greatest regret?
Not resting my biceps earlier in 2022
What would you do if you won 100 million dollars?
Probably pay the debt of all my close family, put a good amount on the side to be sure to have enough money to not work for the rest of my life and then travel around the world
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Qualifying a team for the Olympics has a nice ring to it!
How would you like to die?
In my sleep, natural death
Which gymnast do you most admire?
Kohei Uchimura (JPN) for his greatness (boring answer, ha ha ha!)
What’s your favorite apparatus to do and/or to watch?
I love to do and watch floor and but my favorite final is always high bar
Which gymnastics competition do you have the best memory of?
2021 Worlds was a fairy tale in my career. It has a special place in my heart
Who’s the funniest gymnast you know?
Felix Dolci for sure
What do you like best about gymnastics?
Pushing the limits. This feeling is incredible. A skill can seem impossible at first but then with effort and time, you’re able to do it
What do you dislike most about gymnastics?
This sport is a double-edge sword… when you, you win big, but when you lose, it can abysmal
Your next objective?
Right now, make the team for the 2024 Olympics and win a medal
What do you want to do after you retire as a competing gymnast?
I want to stay in touch with the sport. Not necessarily gymnastics, just keeping working with athletes to help them achieve their goals. I still don’t know what exactly but I’ve got time to figure it out.
The Proust Questionnaire is a set of questions named after French writer Marcel Proust. It is believed that people reveal their true nature in answering these questions and it is often used in modern interviews. The questionnaire has been adapted to fit the world of artistic gymnastics.
More:
William Emard – FIG’s Profile
Men’s Artistic Gymnastics: Results of the 8 Olympic Finals
Other Gymnasts Interviews
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