With Teddy Riner, things rarely go as planned. This morning of August 2019, appointment is given in the hall of his hotel in Tokyo. We were, then, supposed to be less than a year from the Olympic Games in Japan postponed since in 2021 (July 23 - August 8) because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Half an hour of interview was scheduled by his press secretary. Only, the heavyweight of French judo is a (hyper) active and the hotel lobby is invaded by the officials of the international judo federation, the Worlds opening in the Japanese capital the next day. "I can't take a step without being grabbed, we're going to move!" Riner announces.
Barely five minutes later, here we are in the back - and rather crowded, two journalists from France Televisions, filming "Teddy" the remarkable documentary broadcast Monday evening on France 3 (9:05 pm), accompanying us on this road trip improvised - from a Tokyo taxi. "They shoot H24, even when I'm in the bathroom," laughs the judoka, pointing to the two reporters.
"Is it me where it's heavy?" ", He continues. It's summer, the thermometer is flirting with 35 degrees. “Here I am a stranger, I can walk quietly on the street. From time to time they ask me for a photo. Riner, hilarious, tries to show us that he masters the basics of the Japanese language. However, after several minutes, the taxi driver still did not understand where he should drop us off. "We are going to inspect one of the three hotels that I have reserved for my family ... You can't even imagine the number of people who want to come and see me fight!" And as always, there will be latecomers ... ”
Over 100 relatives expected in Tokyo
The taxi goes through the streets of the Japanese capital. “This is my 42nd stay here. The first time I was small, I was younger. I'm starting to get my bearings. There, a little further you have a course to run, which turns around the Palace. And to see Japan at night, you have to be in Roppongi. The taxi marks a first stop. “Here is the budget hotel. I booked for 36 people. We ask how many relatives will be there during the Olympic Games. "Over 100," says the judoka. He came to see the place and began to film.
"That's it, I'm at the hotel, I'm going to show you where you're going to put the mess ( Editor's note: with the postponement of the Olympic Games, he kept the rooms for 2021 ). There, the rooms with space below the beds to put your suitcases. There, the WC. Some will be disappointed because they are not real Japanese toilets. He laughs. "Frankly, it's nice the Japanese toilets that wash and dry, right? It's crazy to have invented something like that. "
The epic resumes. Or almost. Because barely out on the street, Teddy, supposedly anonymous in Japan, gets high. "Judo, judo", calls out a young woman asking for a photo. Five minutes later, while the champion is trying to stop a taxi, another arrives from an alley. Riner (2m04), 3 more heads than the mini Japanese, takes the break. The scene is surreal. "Arigato, arigato ( Editor's note: thank you )", he laughs. "I have the right intonation right?" New laughter, and new taxi which takes us this time to the hall of the World Judo Championships, the same enclosure where the Olympic tournament will take place. More than an hour since the trip started and for the first time, the boy is serious.
"It would be so beautiful to close the circle here in Japan"
The Nippon Budokan is theoretically inaccessible, but no one dares to stop it. "The Olympics will be contested here, so I came to watch, spot ... Ah, this room is nice ... They are already in Games mode, with two tatami mats. »The colossus accelerates, opens the doors one by one and finds after a good 5 minutes what, in a year, will be the warm-up room, the antechamber of his fights. There he is alone in the world, he spins through the corridors, as if possessed. "Franck ( Editor's note: Chambily his trainer ) comes to get me, we are relaxed, he gives me the last indications: it's war, you're going to blow his face . There is a minute, a minute and a half. And boom! "
Teddy Riner suddenly fell into his bubble. Even far from the deadline, the champion instinctively mimics each of the gestures he will make during his Olympic quest. The moment is almost solemn. It is part of one of the first scenes in the France 3 documentary that Benoit Durand and Brice Baubit devote to it. "The athletes will come back there, the coaches will be there ..." Here he is in the middle of the tatami, as if he were already living on Olympic day. "There you look at your family, I will be here myself ..."
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The cavalcade resumes, he now sits at the heart of the stands and contemplates his future playground. “There will be people. I will be expected here, there will be a lot of pressure, as much to take bearings ... It's crazy, the atmosphere of the Games is already palpable ... "The giant is silent to take advantage of the moment and resumes. “It would be so beautiful to close the circle here in Japan. It would not be an icing on the cake, but a fireworks display, an apotheosis ... ”His gaze is lost. "Come on, let's go!" "
