Led by Teddy Riner, the French team continues its preparation for the Olympic Games this weekend at the Antalya tournament, where Madeleine Malonga will try to shine in the -78kg category to win the last French ticket still in play.
After his victory at the Grand Slam in Paris at the beginning of February, Teddy Riner is back to competition in Turkey. As usual, he will aim for victory.
The objective will be to “perform, of course”, explains his coach Franck Chambily to AFP, but above all to “see where he is in terms of Olympic preparation” because this tournament remains a “stepping point” for the colossus of 34 years old with a view to a fourth Olympic title, after those in the heavyweight category in 2012 and 2016 and the team title in 2021.
Compared to Paris two months ago, the level will be “a little higher”, says his coach, with the presence in particular of the Japanese Tatsuru Saito or that of the Finnish Martti Puumalainen, reigning European champion.
– Seed objective –
For Riner as for the other French Olympic selections present in Antalya, Luka Mkheidze (-60 kg), Walide Khyar (-66 kg), Alpha Djalo (-81 kg) and Maxime-Gael Ngayap Hambou (-90 kg), the goal will also be to climb the Olympic ranking to be among the eight seeds at the Games and offer a more favorable draw.
Antalya is one of the last competitions before the Olympics: two other Grand Slams, in Tajikistan and Kazakhstan, then especially the World Championships in Abu Dhabi (May 19-24) are planned in May as the final possibilities for outings before hitting the tatamis of the Arena Champ-de-Mars.
The essential champion Teddy Riner at the Judo Grand Slam on February 4, 2024 (AFP/Archives – EMMANUEL DUNAND)
“The idea is also to take as many opponents as possible who will be at the Games to arrive on D-day with as much information as possible on these potential competitors,” Baptiste Leroy, coach of the French team, explains to AFP masculine.
Like Riner, Luka Mkheidze started the year with a victory in Paris at lightweight. The reigning European champion followed up with silver in Baku and, if he performs well in Antalya, he could be assured of top seed. Bronze medalist in Tokyo, he is aiming for gold in Paris.
The importance of being seeded can be understood with a statistic, says Baptiste Leroy: “You should know that at the last Olympic Games, 83% of the medalists were seeded, 75% among women.”
It is this race for the Olympic ranking and information which pushed the delegations to come in force to Turkey (629 judokas registered for 93 nations).
– “Take the Japanese” –
“The level will be quite high”, observes Leroy, “the Japanese are sending a very, very big team, with five Olympic selections, plus three for girls”, including brother and sister Abe, Hifumi (-66 kg) and Uta (- 52 kg), four-time world champions and reigning Olympic champions.
“One of the objectives would also be for our French to be able to take on the Japanese before the Games, that would be great,” explains the coach.
For Riner, the situation is different: “It’s more the Japanese and others who want to take him, he is the man to take down, they are looking for strategies to be able to beat him in the big competition.”
– Malonga “puts the table back” –
Among the women, eyes will be on Madeleine Malonga (-78kg), who will play her ticket to the Games.
Madeleine Malonga bronze medalist in -78 kg at the Grand Slam judo in Paris, February 4, 2024 (AFP/Archives – EMMANUEL DUNAND)
The federation has already selected thirteen judokas out of fourteen, and only this category remains to be filled. Malonga has her destiny in her hands, after the disappointing 5th place of her competitor Audrey Tcheuméo in Georgia last week.
The silver medalist in Tokyo had already taken a head start at the Paris tournament by beating Tcheuméo before taking bronze.
A competition that she then hoped would be decisive. “But if we have to set the table again, we will set the table again!”, she said. Dinner is served.
2024-03-29 08:31:01
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