Teddy Riner won the Paris Judo Grand Slam on Sunday at Bercy, winning the final against the Japanese Hyoga Ota, a year and a half before the Paris Olympics.
The Frenchman, who injured his ankle last August, won the prestigious Parisian tournament for the seventh time in his career. He thus equals the record of the Frenchwoman Lucie Décosse.
In the final, the 33-year-old colossus was declared the winner on penalties before the end of regulation time, as in the previous round against Uzbek Alisher Yusupov.
Expedited!
For his entry into the running, three years after his last appearance at Bercy, the Guadeloupean had defeated Bahraini Azamat Chotchaev in an expeditious manner, scoring an ippon after 29 seconds.
In the next round, he needed 2 min 35 sec to defeat Kazakh Adil Orazbayev, surprise winner of Brazilian double Olympic medalist Rafael Silva.
Then, in the quarter-finals, the fight against Azerbaijani Dzhamal Gamzatkhanov went to extra time.
Back from injury, Teddy Riner was playing his first Grand Slam in Paris since his victory in Budapest in July 2022, which then marked his return to international competition after his long post-Tokyo Olympics break.
In October 2022, the ten-time world champion had been forced to forfeit for the Worlds in Uzbekistan due to a sprained right ankle. He had returned to competition in the final of the Champions League by teams disputed in Georgia on November 26 with his club PSG.
(With AFP)