Teddy Riner will wear official French kimono at World Championships

President of the French Judo Federation, Stéphane Nomis is delighted with Teddy Riner's choice to fight with the official kimono of the French team, signed Adidas. But he still has to fight a tug of war with Clarisse Agbégnénou, who showed up on the tatamis with a Mizuno kimono last February and who, it seems, is not yet ready to imitate Riner.

Teddy Riner will again wear the official kimono of the French team, signed Adidas, after having been allowed to fight with a kimono of the manufacturer of his choice for a long time. Since 2021, he has been fighting in the judogi of his own brand, Fight Art. This is one less thorn in the side of the Federation, which has been encumbered for several weeks by a conflict with Clarisse Agbegnenou who, on 17 February, presented herself on the Tel Aviv tatami with a kimono of her personal sponsor, the brand Mizuno. Upset by this decision, the Federation sanctioned the two-time Olympic champion by depriving her of a coach for the competition in Israel, which provoked Agbégnénou's anger.

The Tokyo Olympic champion, who does not seem ready to end her dispute, published a statement on Twitter on Wednesday recalling that negotiations were still ongoing. "I am proud to show my daughter and more broadly to little girls and boys that nothing is ever taken for granted, the fight is continuous and at all levels," she said in a message that does not really play appeasement. President of the French Judo Federation, Stéphane Nomis explains why Riner's decision was important for French judo and its national team. And he comes back on the Agbégnénou case.