Ditaji Kambundji wears the necklace with the embedded diamond in every competition
Image: Keystone
Mujinga Kambundji shows the necklace with the Olympic rings given to her by her sisters
Image: Keystone
Mujinga and Ditaji Kambundji: one heart and one soul
Image: Keystone
Ditaji and Mujinga Kambundji in a good mood during a training break
Image: Keystone
Mujinga and Ditaji Kambundji prepare for training at the Wankdorf athletics stadium
Image: Keystone
Ditaji Kambundji wears the necklace with the embedded diamond in every competition
Image: Keystone
Mujinga Kambundji shows the necklace with the Olympic rings given to her by her sisters
Image: Keystone
Mujinga and Ditaji Kambundji: one heart and one soul
Image: Keystone
Ditaji and Mujinga Kambundji in a good mood during a training break
Image: Keystone
Mujinga and Ditaji Kambundji prepare for training at the Wankdorf athletics stadium
Image: Keystone
Mujinga and Ditaji Kambundji are one heart and one soul. So it's no wonder that they both present a piece of jewelry as a lucky charm for the games in Paris - from a mutual colleague.
If you look closely, you can see Ditaji Kambundji's amulet at every competition. It is a tiny diamond set in a fine gold chain around her neck. "I wear it in every competition," says the hurdles sprinter, referring to the diamond she won at the 2021 Lucerne Top Athletics Championships. "It tells me: now it matters."
The story with the diamond certainly has an Olympic background. Three years ago, the 2021 Games in Tokyo beckoned for the then 19-year-old. Qualification was on a knife's edge; only a win at the very last opportunity would earn the necessary points for the World Ranking. It worked: Ditaji Kambundji won in 13.11 seconds at Spitzenleichtathletik Luzern - just over a month ago at the European Championships in Rome, the seventh-placed athlete at the World Championships and runner-up at the European Championships lowered the Swiss record to 12.40 seconds. "I wore the diamond for the first time in Tokyo. It has brought me luck ever since," says the youngest of the four Kambundji sisters.
Mujinga Kambundji also associates the Olympic Games with a piece of jewelry. She presents a small gold necklace with the five Olympic rings. "My sisters gave it to me for my birthday after the Games in Rio," she says. London 2012 and Rio 2016 were engraved on it when she received it. The sprinter also had Tokyo 2021, where she reached the 100 m final, immortalized. The engraving for Paris 2024 should follow soon. And should she extend her career - like Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who punched her ticket for Paris at the age of 37 in 10.94 over 100 m at the Jamaica Trials - then the fifth ring will read Los Angeles 2028.
Perfectly bilingual
The two athletes are perfectly bilingual, as they speak French with their Congolese father. However, the "father tongue" does not ensure a special closeness to France. "I know Paris primarily from the competitions. I ran my first indoor record there," says Ditaji Kambundji, but also mentions a private trip to the Seine with her mother.
For Mujinga Kambundji, France is "a neighboring country like any other". She remembers family vacations in Nice, but Paris itself has no special significance for her. "But of course I'm looking forward to the competitions," she emphasizes.
They both appreciate the proximity of Paris to Bern. Their relatives will be in the stadium. "We won't have time for each other. But just the thought of them being there is motivating," says Mujinga Kambundji. Ditaji also appreciates this, especially as she used to sit in the audience at competitions as a schoolgirl to cheer on her sisters, who are ten years older.
Haute cuisine
France also stands for haute cuisine. "Mujinga is a very good cook," emphasizes Ditaji Kambundji. She accepts the compliment sympathetically, but says: "I like Italian cuisine better because it's uncomplicated." She likes to browse through recipe collections in her free time. If she discovers something on the subject of "healthy and quick to prepare", she often gets inspired.
Mujinga Kambundji also compliments her sister. "Didi is more carefree than me. She's not afraid, she doesn't set herself any limits," says the two-time European 200 m champion. "You're never as carefree as when you're young," she muses. She enjoys the breath of fresh air that her sister brings to the training group.
This is the second time the two have traveled to the Olympic Games together. "The competitions will be similar to the usual major events, but the Olympic feeling will be added," says Ditaji Kambundji. Her sister agrees. "The Olympics is the biggest thing in athletics". Colleagues outside of sport would also notice this event and talk to you about it.
