At the Imagine institute, at 24, boulevard Montparnasse in Paris, it's effervescence.
In the patio, dozens of researchers specializing in genetic diseases and employees left the laboratories for a few minutes to applaud their godfather.
Ten years already that Teddy Riner has lent his image to Imagine.
On the facade, a huge banner is displayed in honor of the judoka, now five times Olympic medalist.
The emotion is palpable.
Stanislas Lyonnet, director of Imagine, and Professor Olivier Hermine, black belt in judo, who made the link between the institute launched by Alain Fischer, currently very committed to the vaccine against Covid-19, and Teddy Riner, in take the opportunity to talk to the champion about health news in the West Indies.
"The hour is serious, the situation is catastrophic, there is a health emergency to save lives, points out the professor of hematology by addressing the champion from Guadeloupe.
You, the sportsmen, have a role to play, your voice counts.
"
"No, I have never attacked the President of the Republic"
Teddy Riner listens, with all the more attention that Tuesday, in the space of a few hours, he found himself at the heart of two controversies. One for having estimated, on RTL, that he was "not there to say
Vaccinate!"
Admittedly the finality is collective, but the decision remains personal ”. The other for giving his opinion on the medals hoped for at the 2024 Games. “To think that we are going to win 90 medals in Paris 2024, I would like to believe it! But it was necessary to invest already seven years back in sport, massively. Confront our youth internationally. So we can always hide behind the Covid… ”, pointed out the champion.
“It was before the reception at the Élysée Palace,” he insists.
So, it is completely false when we say that I
tackled
President Emmanuel Macron ”.
Teddy Riner gets annoyed.
“I stand by my two answers regarding the vaccine and the medals, but I know what I said.
And I don't like my words to be distorted or taken out of context ”.
The two subjects had created controversies, the antivax believing that Riner was not favorable to the vaccine, the provax finding that the champion did not commit enough, while, for others, the triple Olympic champion had knocked out Emmanuel Macron!
Read alsoOJ 2024: 80 medals or a top 5 in three years, can France really believe it?
"No, I have never attacked the President of the Republic," Riner gets angry. His speech on Monday evening
(during the reception at the Élysée Palace of the Olympic and Paralympic medalists in Tokyo)
was correct. Yes, our results in Tokyo were not as good as we could have hoped, yes, we will make sure to do better in 2024. And what I said about the fact that, to have 90 medals in 2024 , it should have been invested long before, I think, but I said these words before the reception, and therefore absolutely not in response to a so-called brawl from the President. "
The champion admits that he is more and more in demand.
“But why should a public figure, not just an athlete, give an opinion on everything?
The growing notoriety, I am asked for whom I vote, to position myself politically.
We are asked for our opinion on everything, and I do not have an opinion on everything to give.
On the other hand, I am aware that we are speaking to a very large audience, especially young people, and that we are necessarily an example and that we must be attentive.
"
"The only people who pull my ears out are my parents!"
"
The judoka continues: “It's the same for the vaccine against the Covid. Me, Teddy Riner, got the shot as soon as I could. Because I wanted to protect myself, because I wanted to protect my loved ones and the most vulnerable, because I wanted to prepare for the Tokyo Games calmly. Because, personally, I think that's the solution to fixing the problem. I was not forced and I am not ashamed to say that I am vaccinated. But it's not my role to tell people to get
vaccinated!
"
"I'm not here to say 'get vaccinated or not', everyone is free to make their choice, it's a decision that must be individual" Teddy Riner.
➡️ When an athlete gives a superb lesson in medical ethics to a doctor, Pr Fischer: 1000 bravos!
https://t.co/F0NIGKONHf
- Florian Philippot (@f_philippot) September 14, 2021
At the risk of his words being used by the antivax or by the president of the Patriots, Florian Philippot who tweeted "when an athlete gives a superb lesson in medical ethics to a doctor, Professor Fischer: 1,000 bravos!" "" I can't stand being instrumentalised, being taken back, not transcribing things as I said them and in the right context, Riner loses his temper. I understand that with the upcoming presidential election, everyone wants to position themselves, but not with me! And that no one comes to say that I was asked to correct comments because they caused controversy, it is I who re-establish things. No, I didn't have my ears pulled. The only people who pull my ears are my parents! "
