Riner meets young people from the Voluntary Military Service

«You should always believe in your dreams.“In the cozy setting of the New York hotel in Disneyland (Marne-la-Vallée), Teddy Riner and a handful of Olympic medalist judokas in Tokyo met on Monday 30 young people from the Voluntary Military Service (SMV) to discuss the themes of inspiration and sharing.

Alongside the three-time Olympic champion, the majority of the mixed team crowned in Tokyo on July 31, including Romane Dicko, bronze medalist in +78 kg, and Madeleine Malonga, Olympic vice-champion in the -78 kg category, has exchanged with these young people aged 18 to 25 for about twenty minutes, under the dim lights of the restaurant transformed into a conference room for the occasion. “It is not by sitting in front of a screen that you can achieve your goals. Everyone you see here has worked hard to become champions», Launched the 32-year-old judoka, in front of an audience hypnotized by his presence. In turn, a dozen young people took the microphone to ask questions on themes as diverse as self-confidence, the preparation of champions and their professional retraining. Carefully selected questions, to which the nine athletes answered, emphasizing their personal experience dotted with failures and successes.

«As a public figure, it is important to bear witness to young people who seek to integrate professionally. The message is to give 100% and not to let go. I am the first concerned. Before the Games, I could have let everything go with my injury, but I decided to fight for a medal“, He declared to the AFP. «On our small scale, we can open doors to people. It’s part of the magic of our job. People look at us with big eyes. We went through the same galleys as them“, Added Romane Dicko, double European champion and considered the new phenomenon of French judo, at only 21 years old. Established in 2015, under the mandate of François Hollande, the Voluntary Military Service has seven centers in France, aimed at young people “dropouts», According to adjutant François, section chief at the SMV.

«We work with employment centers and local missions to attract young people looking for professional integration. Then they basically work as vendors or waiters“, He told AFP. Heir to the compulsory military service, definitively stopped in 2001 by Jacques Chirac, this device created in 2015 provides training of 5 weeks, followed by additional training of four months, during which registrants can obtain the driving license or the certificate. first aid worker. According to the Ministry of the Armed Forces, 5,000 people have been trained since its inception, with a professional integration rate of 70%.