His coronation already had a particular taste, but so far in the right of the term. As soon as he left the tatami on Saturday, Teddy Riner had explained how much he had drawn from his physical and mental reserves to win this eleventh world title, six years after the tenth in 2017. But four days later, this victory snatched from Doha has just lost its flavour.
The international federation acknowledged that a refereeing error prevented Russia's Inal Tasoev, competing under a neutral banner, from winning in the golden score of the +100kg final. The action dates back to the 4th minute of extra time. Tasoev retaliates against an attack by Riner and manages to knock him to the ground. Moment suspended. Won, not won? In the golden score, the first one who scores a point won. The arbitration will consider that not, because the Russian would have lost his support to the impact.
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"After the competition, taking into consideration the current refereeing rules and the opinion of judo experts, we found that a score for Tasoev's counterattack could be awarded. The IJF Refereeing Committee apologizes for its decision and informs that this type of action will be counted in the future, in accordance with the judo rules in force," reads the IJF website.
@NeilAdamsJudo To the Front. Only the Russian has control and sleeve grip with the right hand. Riner lost grip and control since the start of the counter attack. This counter can't framed with Decision 5. Epic refereeing failure! Tasoev won! pic.twitter.com/LHs2CpAW74
— Fred Silva (@fredlinux) May 14, 2023
Riner, at 60% of his physical capacity according to his staff, won on a waza-ari four minutes later. This official communication will give immense regrets to Tasoev, who will not recover the title. "It's never too late to set a new goal," the heavyweight said Wednesday on his Instagram page, refusing to enter into the controversy. Their potential reunion next year at the Paris 2024 Games promises to be exciting.
