The technical director of the France gymnastics center of Marseille, Vincent Pateau, was sentenced Thursday to six months in prison suspended for moral harassment against minor sportswomen he had trained in this high-level structure.
Acquitted for the facts alleged against him by two of the five complainants, Mr. Pateau was also sentenced to a fine of 10,000 euros by the Criminal Court of Marseille. At the hearing, at the end of March, the prosecution had requested a fifteen-month suspended prison sentence.
Toxic culture
On the other hand, no ban on practising one's profession has been pronounced. Wishing such a measure, the prosecutor Véronique Fabron had left it to the discretion of the court. Neither Vincent Pateau nor his lawyer wished to react after the judgment.
In recent years, world gymnastics has been shaken by numerous cases, the most resounding of which erupted around Larry Nassar, former doctor of the American team, convicted in 2018 for sexually assaulting at least 265 gymnasts. After this incommensurate case, gymnasts from all over the world took the floor to denounce abusive practices, exposing a toxic culture within their discipline.
- Sport
- Marseille
- Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
- PACA
- Gymnastics
- Bullying
- Conviction
- Prison
- Lawsuit