French XV’s bankruptcy, Teddy Riner’s record, PSG’s rise… weekend sports recap

A weekend of ups and downs for the French game that was marked by Teddy Riner’s 8th title at the Paris tournament, but also by the Blues’ defeat at the start of the Six Nations tournament.

XV’s Ghost Train of France, Saturday, February 3, before Teddy Riner’s Rollercoaster on Sunday. At the sports amusement park, we experienced all the emotions. Ivory Coast and South Africa thus won the CAN quarter-finals while, in a merry-go-round of Ligue 1, PSG did not want to let go of the mickey’s tail.

Rugby: For the French XV, hard to topple

We left the Blues valiant, but narrowly beaten in their World Cup quarter-final more than three months ago. We saw them strike again, but this time they were indifferent to enter the Six Nations tournament against Ireland in Marseille (17-38). Bloodless, Fabian Galthy’s side put up only superficial resistance against XV du Trefle, who had better recovered from a World Cup exit in the quarter-finals as well. The Irish ballad was not a sweet tune for the Tricolas, for whom Antoine Dupont’s absence was keenly felt.

But this was ensured. Paul Willemse’s post on the half-hour mark was not planned, and it weighed heavily in the balance. The Blues now have a week to heal their wounds and think about their strategy. He will play against Scotland at Murrayfield (Saturday 10 February, 3.15pm). Later played schizophrenic against Wales. First ink, then as feverish as possible to win by one point at the end of a frantic match (26-27). Not long ago, England confirmed they were in tough territory by beating promising Italy, but it was unreal when it came to tipping the scales in their favor (24-27).

Judo: Teddy Riner, Holy Demon

Teddy Riner is at home in Paris. And that’s fine, with the Olympics coming up in six months. The Frenchman made a huge mark at the Paris tournament for the 8th time and sent a message of captaincy at home. Nine months after his 11th world championship title in Qatar, the 34-year-old Riner proved he is not rusty. Although he had a big scare in the semi-finals, he made it to the final fight where he won Golden score to face Kim Min-jong of South Korea.

Earlier, 24-year-old Romane Diko showed his illustrious elder a golden path by ipponing Turkey’s Kyra Ozdemir after 39 seconds to win the under 78kg final. The Olympic champion signals another success in the capital. Teddy Riner’s eight coronations are still a long way off. The French clan finished the Paris tournament with 12 medals, including two heavyweights plus 6 titles won by Clarice Agbagneno, Shirin Boakli, Luka Mekhedz and Faiza Mokdar.

Ligue 1: PSG advance, Lyon rebound

There are also eight points between Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain and their runners-up Nice. The first name, without shining, won the start of the 20th day in Strasbourg on Friday evening (2-1), while the second confirmed its strength by bringing back a draw from Brest (0-0). From an accounting point of view, the operation has been flawless for PSG but, ten days before the Round of 16 meeting against Real Sociedad in the Champions League, confidence still seems shaky.

Finally, in a match between wounded beasts, on Sunday evening, it was OL who bounced back. A goal from Alexandre Lacazette was enough to give Lyonnais some breathing room as they left the red zone. OM remains in a state of turmoil after this new shock.

CAN: Ivory Coast and South Africa through the mouse hole

The steaming of elephants and buffaloes is almost miraculous. The former are in the process of finding a new guide in the person of Emers Fay, who was handed over to head the team after the departure of Jean-Louis Gasset and a very worrying first round. Under his orders, Ivorians have rediscovered a faith that nothing can shake. Reduced to ten men for 75 minutes and led by Mali in the quarter-finals, they equalized in the 90th minute (2-1) before being stripped of their qualification in the final seconds of extra time. They will find the Democratic Republic of Congo in the last four, winners of Guinea on Friday (3-1).

South Africa, for its part, was able to rely on exciting goalkeepers to beat Cape Verde on penalties (0-0, 2-1 tab). During the Test, Ronwen Williams, touched by Grace, kicked four of the Cape Verdeans’ five tries. His team will face Nigeria in the semi-finals.

Swimming: Marc-Antoine Olivier vice world champion in 10 km

In a very tight race, Frenchman Marc-Antoine Olivier won the silver medal ahead of Hungarian Christoph Rasovsky. This is the third time a French swimmer has reached the 10km podium, following bronze in 2017 and silver in 2019. Another French entry, Logan Fontaine, failed to finish fourth after a sprint among eight swimmers for the bronze medal. Thanks to this performance, both men qualified for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.