Olympic judo champion Teddy Riner announces French presidential bid

A new name is in the hat for the 2027 presidential election after five-time Olympic judo champion Teddy Riner officially announced his candidacy yesterday (Monday, November 9). 

Mr Riner, 37, who most recently won two gold medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics, has reportedly been interested in entering politics for several years, and told colleagues after his victories in 2024 that he was looking to enter the field. 

Alongside his five Olympic gold medals, Mr Riner has two bronze medals, and is the 11-time individual world champion in judo. 

While the news may come as a surprise, Mr Riner told Le Parisien his bid was no laughing matter and was “serious.”

"What wouldn't be serious would be to stay silent and remain a mere spectator to what is happening in our country, and what has, in fact, been unfolding for several years now.”

While Mr Riner has been interested in politics for several years, he said a turning point came during the 2024 Olympic Games.

“I saw an entire country come together, proud, happy, only to see it become divided just weeks later. I thought to myself: 'If we were capable of doing that for two weeks, surely we can do the same for the country.’”

However, it was the social unrest France plunged into this autumn that saw him decide to officially enter the political ring.

He has made several comments in recent years announcing his interest in running for political office, with an eye for the presidency. 

“No matter what field I decide to enter, it will be to win, and that includes politics. In politics, who is the champion? It’s the president. If I ever get into it, it would be to become president,” he said at the 'Choose France' summit back in May 2025.

Mr Riner said that if he was elected to political office, he would continue to defend his titles, including at the 2028 Olympic Games, set to be held in Los Angeles. 

He would do so “provided the role allows for it, and the French people give me their blessing,” he told Le Parisien.

He would not be the first judo wrestler to swap the judogi for a suit – David Douillet served a stint as sport minister under the government of prime minister François Fillon during the presidency of Nicolas Sarkozy.

Presidential bid does not come as a shock

Celebrity candidates running for the French presidential election is nothing new. 

Comedian and ‘national treasure’ Coluche was set to run in the 1981 presidential election and polled as high as 16% before dropping out, reportedly due to threats made against him. 

Indeed, the structure of the election makes it possible for anyone to run for the presidency, providing they obtain the signatures of 500 mayors or local officials to back their bid. 

Traditionally, this allows people representing all forms of political belief to run for the presidency and promote their policies.

It is worth noting that Mr Riner is yet to obtain the 500 signatures required. 

The top two candidates enter into a second-round run-off providing no one achieved more than 50% of the vote in the first round, something that is yet to happen under the current Fifth Republic. This format allows campaigns from smaller groups in the first round, before coalescing behind a preferred candidate in the second.  

This also means the backing of an established political party is not required to win the election, and incumbent French President Emmanuel Macron proved this in 2017 when he was elected despite forming his ‘En Marche’ party barely one year before the election.

Mr Riner said that his campaign would be funded through donations and his own finances, as opposed to a party structure.

However, with a packed board of candidates already in place for the election, it seems difficult to predict where Mr Riner would take votes from – and if he has any chance at all of reaching the second round.

The 2027 election may prove to be unique in the Fifth Republic, with the threat of the far-right and far-left potentially leading to several first-round alliances. 

This would see several parties coalesce behind one candidate, improving their chances of reaching the second round. 

What are his politics?

For his part, Mr Riner is in a position comparable to Mr Macron in 2017, a disruptor who is placing himself in opposition to the established political axes – and the political extremes currently top of the polls in France. 

His popularity – a recent study by Ifop ranked Mr Riner 11th in the list of France’s favourite public figures – and his role in bringing people together as a sportsman is the centrepiece for his surprise campaign.

Mr Riner wants to position himself as a ‘unity candidate’, and an outsider to the current political establishment, countering the division of acerbic tribal politics.

“What worries me is the direction the country is taking. It’s unsettling, even for me, an elite athlete,” Mr Riner said to France3 in September.

He is concerned over the rise of extremism, particularly from the far-right. 

In recent months, Mr Riner has begun to surround himself with a cadre of around 20 people, including former civil servants, policy experts, and even former Health Minister François Braun. 

Policy proposals remain light on the ground, but Mr Riner has said his main focuses would be reducing the financial burden on French households of social charges by closing the gap between gross and net wages, reducing France’s debt burden, enacting wider pension reform, and restoring the state’s authority in the wake of violence. 

He did, however, say that if elected he wanted to ensure France had a good relationship with its allies and commanded greater respect on the world stage.

“A lot of people around me have been talking about my first handshake with Donald Trump,” he said, laughing. “We’ll see who has the firmer handshake.” 

What is the reaction? 

Those who know Mr Riner well have said the announcement is not surprising.

“Two years ago, word got around. He even mentioned it to the president of the International Judo Federation,” said former president of the French Judo Federation Jean-Luc Rougé to FranceInfo. 

“Perhaps this is just a trial run, and maybe victory will come next time around,” he added.

"I was expecting it. He’s talked about it before," said his former coach Benoît Campargue to RMCSport. 

However, not all reactions have been positive. 

Following his comments about the far-right in a September 2026 interview, Rassemblement National MP Julien Odoul posted on social media website X a comment saying “Poor little thing. Everything’s going to be just fine, Teddy!”

Mr Riner has received racist comments on social media, and in September the Paris prosecutor’s office opened an investigation into some of the comments.

Former Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra announced her concerns that the presidential bid may affect Mr Riner’s focus on defending his titles, and pull him away from sport altogether.

“This is the season when candidates start popping up. I think that, little by little, things will become clearer,” said fellow candidate Bruno Retailleau in response to the announcement.

Another rival candidate for the presidency Edouard Philippe called Mr Riner “a weighty candidate [candidat de poids],” punning on the athlete’s category in sporting events, but said he “admired” him for the bid. 

Perhaps some of the kindest words came from the man Mr Riner is looking to replace. 

“I am very happy... that someone like Teddy Riner, a great champion, has decided to engage in this presidential debate and bring his convictions, ideas, and talent to the table; that can only be a positive contribution to the country,” said Mr Macron following the announcement.