Biography
Houinato was born on 15 October 1996 in Melun, France. [3] [4] He has Beninese ancestry through his father, and Houinato visited the country several times growing up. [5] He played football as a youth, but his mother did not like the sport and signed him up for judo instead. [4] He competed in judo for a time in Cesson but eventually quit the sport; when he was age 17, he decided to return to the sport. [4] He became a black belt in 2014. [6] However, he suffered a broken arm early into his return to judo and then competed at a low level for the following three years. [4] He then left his club, in Brétigny-sur-Orge, and joined one in Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois, Essonne. [4]
Houinato attended school in Montpellier, studying journalism, and received a bachelor's degree in information and communication. [3] [4] He joined a club in Montpellier and rose through the ranks, competing in the 81 kg category. [4] He ultimately reached a ranking in the top 20 nationally. [7] After he graduated from school, Houinato also became a journalist for the broadcaster Radio France. [8]
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. [9] However, due to the limited resources of Beninese athletic associations, Houinato mostly paid by himself to travel to tournaments, train, and get equipment. [9] 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." [9] 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, and competed at the 2024 World Judo Championships, where he lost in the round of 64. [10] [11] [12]
As the Olympics approached, Houinato created a weekly radio show, "La Prépa", where he described his attempts to qualify. [5] [13] 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." [5] 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. [9]
By April 2024, Houinato's global ranking was 70th. [9] To qualify, Houinato needed to rank in the top 12 in Africa. [5] He ultimately was successful in qualifying. [14]
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