« C’est quasiment inhumain d’aller lui péter la jambe », declared Dayyan Boulemtafes following France’s defeat in the repechage round of the team judo competition in Baku, Azerbaijan. The French men’s team fell 4-3 to Georgia, the defending champion, concluding a global tournament that left the squad with four medals and no titles for the first time since 2003.
France Drops Repechage Thriller to Georgia
The French squad arrived in Baku targeting gold after capturing Olympic team titles at both the Tokyo and Paris Games. Competing without several marquee names—including Teddy Riner, who stayed home due to injury, and Clarisse Agbégnénou and Joan-Benjamin Gaba, who were not selected for the collective event—the team navigated its opening matchup against Kazakhstan comfortably with a 4-1 victory. However, the subsequent test against Russia proved far tighter, ending deadlocked at 3-3 before Aleksa Mitrovic dropped the decisive final match in the -70 kg category.
That pattern repeated in the repechage fixture against Georgia. With the team score level once again, the outcome hinged on a final showdown between Mitrovic and Georgia’s double Olympic champion Lasha Bekauri. Bekauri had sustained a serious knee injury during an earlier bout in the competition but persevered on a single working leg to claim the win. Boulemtafes, who had earned a bronze medal earlier in the week in the -73 kg division, admitted afterward that he could not bring himself to target his injured opponent’s compromised limb.
The Moral Dilemma on the Tatami
Reflecting on the decisive bout, Boulemtafes expressed deep regret over his restraint while acknowledging the fierce competitive reality of international judo. « Je n’ai pas assuré et je m’excuse pour l’équipe », he stated, explaining that sportsmanship ultimately outweighed the instinct to exploit an opponent’s physical vulnerability. « Sur le coup, je ne sais pas quoi dire. C’est du sport, mais pour moi, c’est quasiment inhumain d’aller lui péter la jambe. »
Men’s team coach Daniel Fernandes offered a pragmatic counterpoint regarding the ruthlessness required at the highest level of international competition. « Si les rôles avaient été inversés, Bekauri n’aurait eu aucun scrupule à marcher sur Aleksa, ce qui est normal », Fernandes observed. Despite mitigating circumstances surrounding the roster’s composition, the coach maintained that the delegation’s overall output fell short of expectations. « De manière générale, on se doit de faire mieux », he said.
A Historic Title Drought in Baku
The tournament’s conclusion marked a notable shift in French judo fortunes. By failing to secure a single gold medal in Azerbaijan, the delegation broke a streak stretching back over two decades. While injuries and strategic resting decisions depleted the lineup, the team left Baku with four total medals—highlighted by Boulemtafes’s bronze—but without the top-tier finish customary for the program.
