The red bib of the reigning world champion flocked to her judogi was not enough. Present at the World Championships in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) with the firm intention of winning a seventh title, Clarisse Agbégnénou had to be content, Tuesday May 21, with a bronze medal at the end of the small final won in the golden score against the Slovenian Andreja Leski. This new charm would undoubtedly have delighted some judokas in this women’s tournament, particularly successful in the under 63 kg category in which the Frenchwoman competes. But not the double gold medalist from the Tokyo Olympic Games (individual and team), who since the start of the year has had a flawless run towards the Paris Games.

Victorious at the Grand Slam in Paris at the beginning of February – which enabled her to equal the record of Lucie Décosse, also holder of seven titles in the capital -, dominant a month later at the Grand Slam in Tashkent (Uzbekistan), the licensee of Red Star Club from Champigny-sur-Marne (Val-de-Marne) approached the Worlds with the status of favorite. And statistics to make the competition green with envy. During the last eight world championships, Clarisse Agbégnénou has always reached the final, and she has won six of them.

Her failure in Abu Dhabi in the quarter-finals against Canadian Catherine Beauchemin-Pinard is therefore a first. In the Mubadala Arena with its sparse ranks, she let herself be surprised by the number 1 in the world ranking, strong enough on her support to overthrow the Frenchwoman one minute from the end of the fight. The Canadian then managed to counter her attacks and maintain this waza-ari (or “provisional point”) until the end of the confrontation.

“I was very angry with myself (…), I wanted to play a little more strategy and in fact, there is no strategy to do, you have to atomize them from the start,” reacted the French at the end of the day, cited by Agence France-Presse.

Keeping an eye on the rising generation at Paris 2024

During the Paris Games, the 31-year-old champion will have to be wary of this experienced opponent, two years her junior. But the Rennaise will especially have to keep an eye on the rising generation of less than 63 kg, represented in particular by the two finalists of the day, the Dutch Joanne van Lieshout (21 years old) and the Polish Angelika Szymanska (24 years old), but also by the Kosovar Laura Fazliu (23), who shares bronze with Clarisse Agbégnénou and has to date two victories in as many matches against the Frenchwoman.

At the end of a tense fight, gold went to the young Dutchwoman, who had so far distinguished herself with two junior world champion titles. “The young people are pushing a lot, they want to dethrone the old ones,” the double Olympic medalist confided in mid-April, in an interview with Le Monde. At the Grand Slam in Paris, I wanted to bang my fist on the table, take a mental hit, say: “I’m still here.” »

This semi-failure at the Worlds should not, however, dent the mentality of Clarisse Agbégnénou, whose determined look at each appearance on the tatami reveals the ambition of winning a final Olympic title, this summer, at home. “Clarisse had set herself the challenge of arriving at the Paris Games with both bibs, the gold bib of the Olympic champion and the red bib of the world champion. But she also wanted to consolidate her place in the world rankings,” confided Christophe Massina, head of the French women’s team, before the start of the competition.

Only the second part of the contract is fulfilled for the headliner of the French delegation in Abu Dhabi – in the absence of Romane Dicko and Teddy Riner. The bronze medal obtained Tuesday afternoon in the Emirati sports complex will allow him to collect numerous points and progress in the Olympic ranking. Currently 9th in this ranking, she should reach the top 8 and start the Olympic deadline in the seeded group, synonymous with a more peaceful start to the tournament.

“It’s a medal that I didn’t have, the bronze, it had to be in my collection,” quipped the Frenchwoman. I feel solid, even if I bring home a bronze medal, that comforts me. » Before promising: “If I am like this in two months, with the concentration of the Olympic Games, I will be untouchable. »

In the men’s draw, Frenchman Alpha Djalo, qualified in less than 81 kg for the Olympics, was eliminated in the second round. Halfway through the Abu Dhabi Worlds, the Blues still only have two medals – with the bronze won by Amandine Buchard on Sunday in less than 52 kg.