Valentin Houinato (born 15 October 1996) is a French–Beninese judoka and journalist. He qualified to represent Benin at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | French, Beninese |
| Born | 15 October 1996 Melun, France |
| Occupation | Judoka |
| Sport | |
| Country |  Benin |
| Sport | Judo |
| Weight class | –81 kg |
| Achievements and titles | |
| World Champ. | R64 (2024) |
| African Champ. | 5th (2022, 2023) |
| Profile at external databases | |
| IJF | 67568 |
| JudoInside.com | 155325 |
| Updated on 20 July 2024 | |
Biography
editHouinato was born on 15 October 1996 in Melun, France.[1][2] He has Beninese ancestry through his father, and Houinato visited the country several times growing up.[3] He played football as a youth, but his mother did not like the sport and signed him up for judo instead.[2] He competed in judo for a time but eventually quit the sport; when he was age 17, he decided to return to the sport.[2] He became a black belt in 2014.[4] However, he suffered a broken arm early into his return to judo and then competed at a low level for the following three years.[2] He then left his club, in Brétigny-sur-Orge, and joined one in Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois, Essonne.[2]
Houinato attended school in Montpellier, studying journalism, and received a bachelor's degree in information and communication.[1][2] He joined a club in Montpellier and rose through the ranks, competing in the 81 kg category.[2] He ultimately reached a ranking in the top 20 nationally.[5] After he graduated from school, Houinato also became a journalist for the broadcaster Radio France.[6]
In 2022, Houinato, with a goal of ultimately competing at the Summer Olympic Games, decided to compete in judo for his father's home country of Benin, as it gave him a better opportunity of making the Olympics.[7] However, due to the limited resources of Beninese athletic associations, Houinato mostly paid by himself to travel to tournaments, train, and get equipment.[7] He described in Le Monde the difficulty of working full-time as a journalist and competing in judo: "there are a lot of struggles, so I'm talking about a lot of struggles ... I've been walking on a tightrope for months."[7] Houinato placed fifth at the 2022 African Judo Championships and did the same again in 2023; he also won bronze medals at African Open events four times from 2023 to 2024.[8][9]
As the Olympics approached, Houinato created a weekly radio show, "La Prépa", where he described his attempts to qualify.[3][10] He told France 24 of his experience with journalism and judo: "It's a taste [of] hell because I don't sleep. I get up early, I go to bed late. I go to muscular training in the morning before I come to the radio. I'm coming to the editorial conference, I'm doing my day, and, when the news allows, I go straight to the judo after."[3] Le Monde noted in April 2024:
For over a year, Houinato has been juggling work, training and tournaments without a coach to help him, dealing with injuries and struggling to find money – all on his own. He has a small sponsor and has launched an online fundraising campaign. All this exhausts him physically and mentally, sometimes to the point of bringing him to tears. A doctor told him he was suffering from "cognitive overload" and prescribed antidepressants.[7]
By April 2024, Houinato's global ranking was 70th.[7] To qualify, Houinato needed to rank in the top 12 in Africa.[3] He ultimately was successful in qualifying.[11]
References
edit- ^ a b "Valentin Houinato Judoka". JudoInside.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g Vanovertveld, Eric (22 March 2023). "Seine-et-Marne : Originaire de Cesson, Valentin Houinato vise les Jeux Olympiques avec le Bénin" [Seine-et-Marne: Originally from Cesson, Valentin Houinato aims for the Olympic Games with Benin]. Actu.fr (in French).
- ^ a b c d Houeix, Roman (31 March 2024). "Judo, boulot, JO ? La course contre-la-montre du Franco-Béninois Valentin Houinato" [Judo, job, Olympic? The race against the watch of the French-Beninish Valentin Houinato] (in French). France 24.
- ^ "Robin CASAROLI et Valentin HOUINATO ceintures noires" [Robin CASAROLI and Valentin HOUINATO black belts]. jc-cessonvertstdenis.clubeo.com (in French). Judo Club Cesson Vert Saint Denis. 17 October 2014.
- ^ Foreau, Laurent (8 June 2022). "Vendée : objectif "Jeux olympiques" pour le judoka Valentin Houinato, néo Béninois" [Vendée: “Olympic Games” objective for judoka Valentin Houinato, new Beninese]. Actu.fr (in French).
- ^ Rigaud-Pezzoni, Martin (25 January 2024). "PORTRAIT. Micro, boulot, judo… et JO ? Le rêve fou du judoka-journaliste Valentin Houinato" [PORTRAIT. Microphone, work, judo… and the Olympics? The crazy dream of judoka-journalist Valentin Houinato]. Ouest-France (in French).
- ^ a b c d e Kessous, Mustapha (21 April 2024). "Paris 2024: Valentin Houinato's Olympic quest as Radio France journalist and Benin judoka". Le Monde.
- ^ "Valentin Houinato Results". JudoInside.com.
- ^ Eklou, Kokouvi (8 November 2023). "Jeux Olympiques 2024: Un judoka béninois en route pour Paris" [2024 Olympic Games: A Beninese judoka on his way to Paris]. La Nation (in French).
- ^ Roure, Benjamin (28 April 2024). "Journaliste et judoka dans la course aux JO : le quotidien très sportif de Valentin Houinato" [Journalist and judoka in the race for the Olympics: the very sporting daily life of Valentin Houinato]. Télérama (in French).
- ^ "Ranking for Olympic Games". International Judo Federation – via Wayback Machine.
External links
edit- Valentin Houinato at the International Judo Federation
- Valentin Houinato at JudoInside.com
- Valentin Houinato at AllJudo.net (in French)
- Valentin Houinato at The-Sports.org
- Valentin Houinato on Instagram
