99
Are Function Calls Still Slow in Python? An Analysis of Recent Optimizations in CPython
(blog.codingconfessions.com)
This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
There is a difference being able to drop down in C and using exclusively C.
One of the main advantage of python is being to quickly write code, and using C-based library / part of code written in C (or fortran, or rust for what it matters) when needed.
"just write C" may lack a bit of nuance.