A few days before the opening of the Olympic Games, French athlete Wilfried Happio is accused of domestic violence by a former partner. In an article published by The worldshe says she suffered a lot of violence between 2018 and 2019. “I have a lot of black holes, linked to a lot of trauma… There are things that are unclear, it’s not that I’m trying to hide something,” she explains to the daily.
She said she had suffered regular violence, which allegedly began in March 2018. The images kept on her phone include a photo from December 17, 2018, where she allegedly received “a huge punch in the head.” Or on January 28, 2019: “He gave me a huge slap with his signet rings because he couldn’t stand me smoking.”
She describes insults, “physical and moral violence.” The athlete did not respond to requests from Le Monde. His lawyer explains that his client denies “being a violent or misogynistic man.” He describes a relationship that is “very complicated, as some stories are, especially for young adults. He denies the facts he is accused of.”
Two other complaints dismissed
In August 2020, Wilfried Happio was already the subject of a complaint for violence from Janet Scott, another athlete. “Unable to establish whether Mr. Happio (had) assaulted Ms. Scott or whether he (had) acted in self-defense”, the disciplinary committee of the French Athletics Federation acquitted him in October. The courts in turn closed the case in October 2021, due to “insufficiently characterized offense”. In this story, the young woman who is testifying today, had written a letter to defend Wilfried Happio. She attested to “having nothing to reproach him for in terms of violence”. “I was afraid and I was in love, still”, she justifies herself today.
Another case was closed without further action, again for “insufficiently characterized offense”, in February 2023. Another Insep athlete had accused him of sexual assault. Wilfried Happio had been taken into custody before being cleared of all suspicion.
One of the best medal chances in French athletics
The young woman who confided in the Monde has not yet filed a complaint. She plans to do so “soon,” once she finds a prescription written by a Planned Parenthood doctor from 2018, when a doctor found, according to her, marks that indicated her injuries.
But the French Athletics Federation (FFA) took the matter to court on Thursday. “A report was sent to the Public Prosecutor under Article 40 of the Code of Criminal Procedure,” it wrote, adding that it had also launched an internal disciplinary procedure. “Pending the court’s decision, the FFA would like to point out that Wilfried Happio is presumed innocent and that, as a result, his status as a player selected for the Paris Olympic Games is not in question,” it said.
This new affair comes to light a few days before the opening of the Olympic Games. Five-time French champion in the 400-meter hurdles, fourth at the last world championships in Eugene, in the United States, Wilfried Happio is one of the best chances for a medal for French athletics. The sprinter’s lawyer regrets “that these affairs are resurfacing just before the Games, while on the contrary he needs serenity to prepare well for them.”
Source: www.20minutes.fr
