Performance has taken a back seat. While Léa Fontaine won, on Sunday August 30, her fourth Grand Slam title, in Lausanne (Switzerland), in the +78 kg category, the 26-year-old French judoka suffered a torrent of grossophobic remarks, eclipsing in the process her major performance which allowed her to achieve the status of world number one.
These comments caused a wide reaction in the world of judo. “I am stunned and really angry when reading these comments. It hurts my heart. This is not the first time that Léa has experienced this kind of thing. She has just won a competition, and people are taking the liberty of criticizing her physique,” says Julia Tolofua, judoka member of the French team and vice-world champion of +78 kg.
Attacks that must be “fought, banned and punished”
Her teammate in the French team, Romane Dicko, whom she beat in the final of the Grand Slam in Lausanne, also defended Léa Fontaine, in a story, published on her Instagram account. “These comments have absolutely nothing to do with sport, or even with the notion of humanity for that matter. Criticizing athletes for their performance will always be accepted and acceptable but attacks linked to gender, physique or skin color must always be fought, banned and punished,” she wrote. The four-time Olympic medalist also called “each of us [to] be vigilant on the networks and not hesitate to report any abusive behavior. Hate, contempt and aggression have nothing to do there, neither here nor elsewhere”.
The grossophobic comments, of which Léa Fontaine was the target, show once again that women's bodies are more subject to attacks and criticism than men's. “When it comes to heavyweights for men, I never hear criticism. Often, we say that heavyweights are the premier category in judo, which is not the case for women,” points out Émilie Andéol, Olympic champion at the Rio Games in 2016, in this +78 kg category.
"When Teddy [Riner, category + 100 kg], fights, no one says anything to him. There are no comments. But, we always have to have something to say about women's bodies. It's very annoying. I would like to know, if the people who commented, worry about the many hours of training required per week.
Émilie Andéol, Olympic champion in the +78 kg category
at franceinfo: sport
Even if mentalities are changing in society and in the world of sport, there is still a long way to go. "Among men, we will say that they are strong, powerful. But a woman who weighs more than 100 kilos, that will be very frowned upon. And we will immediately say that she eats too much, that she has no technique", analyzes Emilie Andéol, who has also suffered this type of attack. The latter thinks that the use of social networks has made them more virulent: "We cannot compare judo. It is different between light and heavy. In the same way, we will not produce the same judo on a right-handed person or a left-handed person, as on a tall or a short one. Our judos adapt according to our categories, and through strategies according to the profiles in front of us. Let's stop constantly comparing."
Weight, far from being an advantage for winning
Shocked by the comments received by Léa Fontaine, Emilie Andéol recalls that, in the +78 kg category, the highest in weight among women, several types of profile coexist. "There can be sharp, very muscular girls, lighter or heavier. This is our category which is like this. But in no case, it is only strength that counts. There are techniques, strategy, as in any category", she explains. So, when the comments point to the supposed weight difference between Léa Fontaine and Romane Dicko as an argument for victory on Sunday in Lausanne, Emilie Andéol immediately brushes them aside. “It’s nonsense,” she argues. “Sometimes, it’s even the lightest profiles that can have an advantage over the heavier ones because they are more mobile, more agile when moving.” “These are comments from simple-minded people,” adds Julia Tolofua.
“The lighter athletes will play on this advantage, will be quicker on the hands or in movement, like Romane Dicko for example. Léa plays more on her strength, which is what allowed her to win in Lausanne. Each has their strengths.”
Julia Tolofua, world vice-champion of +78 kg
at franceinfo: sport
“From the moment we put women's bodies on a screen, it will be criticized. It has always been like that, and it's sad, in 2026, to see people criticizing the body of an athlete when she has just won a title. We have the impression that the more we advance in time, the more we regress in mentality,” regrets Julia Tolofua, who has suffered hateful comments linked to her gender.
"When I was younger, even though I wore low-cut t-shirts, people called me 'sir', or 'young man'. They wouldn't let me pass for the weigh-ins because they told me that it was for girls and the boys were on the other side, like the toilets. Today, I still experience it in my daily life, but less in sport where people know me better," she testifies.
