Presidential 2027: “It reminds me a little of Coluche”… Teddy Riner’s candidacy seen by the world of judo

Teddy Riner likes to do things very big, very quickly, very early. Senior world champion at just 18 years old, the judoka chose another very big stage to make his debut in politics: the 2027 presidential election. The five-time Olympic champion announced his candidacy this Monday in Le Parisien, before making it official with a short video published on his social networks.

“I will not be one of those who watch the country burn while looking for excuses,” explained the Guadeloupean. I have not spent my life behind a desk. Fighting has always been a part of me. I know what it’s like to fight, to fall and to get up again, always. If refusing to put my head down and refusing chaos makes me crazy, then yes, I am completely crazy. »

Riner, “a boy who has ideas to convey”

Upon hearing the news over the phone, Jean-Luc Rougé, former president of the French Judo Federation, was surprised but after a few minutes of discussion said to himself “Why not? »: “He is free. He’s a boy who has ideas to get across, he’s a citizen, in a somewhat vague context like today which allows for openings, he explains to us. It reminds me a little of Coluche. »

The comedian thus ran for the presidential election in 1981. What, at first, seemed to be a simple joke ended up being something very concrete. According to polls, Coluche is credited with 10% of voting intentions, but he ends up giving up in the face of too much pressure. “Teddy, he always had a lot of ambitions,” continues Rougé. Afterwards until he is elected…”

Without wanting to directly give her opinion on Teddy Riner's candidacy, Frédérique Jossinet, silver medalist at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, believes that “it's always a good thing when athletes and people from civil society get involved. Teddy has his own reasons, like everyone else. »

“Judo as a means of education”

Teddy Riner will, like Frédérique Jossinet (candidate on Bertrand Delanoë's list for Paris City Hall in 2007), Jean-Luc Rougé (candidate for the legislative elections in Essonne in 1993) or David Douillet (MP and Minister of Sports under Nicolas Sarkozy in 2011-2012), join the judokas who are involved in political life. Which has a certain logic, according to the former leader:

“At the beginning, the Japanese Jigoro Kano created judo as a means of education. It was the education of man to participate in the improvement of society. And there are two maxims: mutual aid and prosperity and optimal use of energy. Energy can be force, money, human resources…”

“It’s not just judo, fencing does the same,” adds Frédérique Jossinet. We are open, we are interested in doing good for France, beyond our performances. We are fighters, consciously or unconsciously. Whatever political environment I entered, I never asked myself any questions. It interested me, I wanted it, I found it to be a real challenge. »

“Very courageous” to come forward

In his interview with Le Parisien, Teddy Riner said he expected to “take hits” during his presidential campaign. An element that our interlocutors did not fail to highlight. “It will be very complicated,” imagines Jean-Luc Rougé. It has to be armored, because we can exploit any attitude. It’s very courageous to try to do something politically and show up. He's going to take a beating, that's for sure, but he's tough, and he especially needs to be tough on a psychological level. »

“I experienced presidential elections through professional political candidates,” indicates double Olympic champion David Douillet in L’Equipe. It's a grinding machine. You're skinned from every angle, you have to have thick skin. But it is aligned with what he had already said a few months ago. » In May 2025, Teddy Riner declared that if he entered politics, it “was not to be Minister of Sports, but to be President”. The first promise is respected.