Teddy Riner

Teddy Riner is a judo champion and some consider him the best judoka in history. He won the most Olympic judo gold medals in history at five medals, competing for France between 2012 and 2024. He totals seven Olympic medals: five gold and two bronze.

Riner won three Olympic individual titles at heavyweight (+100 kg; in 2012, 2016 and 2024) and two in the mixed team event (the delayed 2020 Games and 2024). He secured his fifth gold in dramatic fashion, winning the decisive bout for France in their mixed team final against Japan, having been selected at random to face off against his rival Tatsuru Saito.

At the age of 14, Riner joined Pôle Espoirs de Rouen. He remained there one year, during which he trained with Dominique Paolozzi. The following year, he went to Paris to join the French national team at INSEP, where he was a boarder. He did the bulk of his preparation with Benoît Campargue, one of the national coaches. Nevertheless, Serge Dyot, his coach at Paris Judo and later at Lagardère Paris Racing, was never far away. The two men have known each other since Teddy was a teenager.

One year, during a session, the coach gave his own black belt to his young judoka, who had forgotten his. “I then wore it for a fight,” remembers Riner. “It brought me luck. I found it suited me better than him. Since then, I’ve always had it with me. I wear it in all my competitions. It’s my favorite belt.”