The Parisian judokas were crowned European champions on Saturday thanks to their victory in the final of the Champions League, a mixed team competition.
France Télévisions – Sports Editorial
Published on 21/12/2024 18:41
Updated on 21/12/2024 18:42
Reading time: 2min
Five months after his gold medal at the Paris Games, Teddy Riner and his PSG Judo club won the Champions League on Saturday December 21 in Montpellier. The five-time Olympic champion, for his return to competition, won his only fight.
The Parisians won 4-0 in the final against the Serbian club Judo club Red Star of Belgrade, with points also reported by Romane Dicko (+70 kg), whose return to competition since the Olympic Games in Paris, Faiza Mokdar (-57 kg) and the Japanese Tatsuki Ishihara (-73 kg). The Rouge et Bleu had, before that, defeated Arts Martiaux Asnières Judo in the quarter-finals, and Judo Ukraine in the semi-finals.
Teddy Riner, whose participation in the event was announced Friday to everyone's surprise, only got on the mat once, during the final. He faced the Cuban Andy Granda, a worthy opponent, world champion in 2022 and fifth in the last Worlds in 2024, like the Paris Olympics. After five months without competition, the French judoka was greeted by a nice ovation when he entered the mat, but he logically appeared far from his best level. However, he won, on penalties, after more than eight minutes of a difficult but unspectacular fight.
Initially, the five-time Olympic champion was not announced in the PSG squad for the competition, due to failure to extend his contract with the Parisian club, which expired on August 31. But an agreement on an extension, the duration of which was not specified, was finally reached to allow him to participate in the end-of-year tournament. His presence was also announced for the Paris Grand Slam in February.
