Tokyo (AFP)

The bronze cushioned the shock: beaten in the quarter-finals, Teddy Riner did not manage to conquer the third consecutive Olympic title which would have made him enter the legend of his sport, but he remobilized to go for a bronze medal, like Romane Dicko a few minutes earlier.

The champion has fallen.

And inevitably, when it comes to Teddy Riner, it makes noise.

The one who never lost - 154 wins in a row over almost 10 years - fell on the carpets of Nippon Budokan, the temple of Japanese judo, for the third time in 18 months.

The first two had not really had any consequences, but they had perhaps come to remind the opponents of the Guadeloupe that invincibility does not exist.

World No. 1 and ultimately bronze medalist Tamerlan Bashaev may have had this in mind when Riner glared at him before stepping onto the mat in the quarterfinals.

Because the Russian did not lower his eyes and in the extra time of a fight overall mastered by the ten-time world champion, he countered an attack from Riner and made him fall back.

The Frenchman made a few gestures of spite, unhappy with the decision of the referees or his moment of inattention, then he disappeared with black eyes, the time to prepare for the rest.

- Very sharp -

It was crystal clear: despite a chaotic preparation marked by long periods without a fight since the Rio Games and, very recently, by a left knee injury kept secret but which deprived him of judo for two months, Riner was in full swing. form.

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During the warm-up already, when he chained the movements like a tango dancer weighing 135 kilos, it was clear that the Frenchman was particularly sharp, as he had not been for several years.

His strength was again evident in the draft, when he first dispatched the hapless Brazilian Rafael Silva, now beaten 10 times in 10 fights and who this time only lasted 45 seconds.

Then, for the bronze, he again martyred the Japanese Hisayoshi Harasawa, his victim of the final of the Rio Games in 2016, designated to bring the heavyweight title to Japan and who failed.

Riner won on penalties in the Golden Score, without ever having been worried, and since he had had two easy fights to start, he will have finally stumbled on the only attack worthy of the name successful by his five opponents of the day. .

Bronze was not the desired metal but on the podium, Riner still embraced his medal, his fourth after the two golds of 2012 and 2016 and the bronze of 2008, and waved it towards the French camp as if she was the most beautiful.

- Ambitious guide -

"The truth is kiffante. It is the medal of courage and pride," he then explained to the press.

"My children wanted a medal, for the color they will see nothing but fire," he also smiled.

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Riner also left the door open for the Games in Paris in 2024 and was very motivated to seek a title on Saturday in the mixed team event, entered for the first time on the Olympic program.

His new dietetic discipline has therefore not dampened his appetite for victories and on Saturday he will be the ambitious guide of the France team which, with seven medals won at the Budokan, has already equaled its Barcelona-1992 and London-2012 record.

Because the superb Japanese stay of the women's team continued on Friday with the young Romane Dicko (21), who also obtained bronze for her first Olympics.

Impeccable in her match for third place against the Turkish Kayra Sayit, beaten by ippon in just over a minute, the double European champion had already been expeditious in her first two fights.

But in the semi-final, she suffered the law of Cuban Odalys Ortiz, world N.1 and legend of the category, which was imposed by waza-ari.

Finally a silver medalist, Ortiz won her fourth medal in four Olympic Games.

Like a certain Teddy Riner.

© 2021 AFP