While the judoka is allowed to compete with his own brand, the Olympic champion was deprived of the presence of a federal trainer, Friday at the Grand Slam in Tel Aviv, for having put on a kimono of his own sponsor, considered a “competitor ” from that of the federation.
Back to competition at the Grand Slam in Tel Aviv (Israel), Clarisse Agbégnénou appeared on the tatami on Friday, February 17, with a kimono from the Mizuno brand, contrary to the partnership signed by the French Judo Federation (FFJ) with the Adidas brand. Before the competition, the national technical director, Sébastien Mansois, had directly notified Clarisse Agbégnénou by email: “We remind you that the official combat uniform of the France team, provided by the national technical staff, is compulsory”.
The punishment was immediate. The French judoka appeared in Tel Aviv orphaned by her trainer federal. If this situation is regretted by the Federation, David Inquel, vice-president of the FFJ, was very clear: “When a partner (Adidas) buys the image of the France team, all members must wear the official colors when they join this institution”. However, during the last Grand Slam in Paris, played from February 4 to 5, the ten-time tricolor world champion, Teddy Riner, appeared wearing a kimono from his own brand, Fightart. A privilege that the tricolor judoka cannot explain.
A derogation from 2017 for Teddy Riner
“It’s an injusticedeplores the French. Teddy has the right to fight with the kimono he wants, whereas it is different for me. I have to obey and carry out the rules given to me.” From 2017, Teddy Riner, supported by his lawyer at the time, Delphine Verheyden, had already obtained the freedom to display her own supplier on her kimono, believing that it could be technical equipment (like shoes in athletics). This agreement thus allowed the triple Olympic champion to wear the outfit of the French team, sporting the Under Armour, his former sponsor logo.
The entourage of the French judoka has all the more difficulty in explaining this privilege granted to the tenfold world champion, and not to Clarisse Agbégnénou. “Only the Federation can answer this question. I don’t understand why it gave preferential treatment to a man, but not to a woman”, asks one of the champion’s relatives.
A distinct situation for the Federation
David Inquel, vice-president of the FFJ, wanted to clarify the terms of the recent agreement reached with the 33-year-old judoka. “It is not an authorization that Teddy Riner obtained, it is a negotiation that we carried out together, supports the vice-president of the Federation. Teddy wished to wear her own brand kimono and Adidas agreed, considering it was not one of their direct competitors. All this negotiation was ultimately contractualized.
For David Inquel, the context of the two cases is quite distinct. “We are not in this situation for Clarisse: she took a direct competitor to Adidas for her kimono, and placed it directly on the tatami without any discussion, establishing a de facto showdown with the Federation”he assures. Contacted by franceinfo: sport, the official sponsor of the FFJ, Adidas, did not wish to comment.
