Fighting in the under 93 kg weight division, Rougé was the first French judoka to win gold medal at the World Judo Championships in 1975. He was elected president of the French Judo Federation in 2005, replacing Michel Vial. He was also a candidate for the 1993 French parliamentary elections under the banner of "Rassemblement par le sport". On 23 November 2013 Rougé was promoted to the rank of 9th dan.