Jean Lapeyre will long remember his time at the Palais-Bourbon. Powerful legal director and deputy general director of the French Football Federation (FFF), employee of the body since 1987, the sixty-year-old was not spared by the deputies, Thursday, November 9, during his hearing by the committee of parliamentary inquiry into the failings of sports federations.
After the interrogations of the ex-president (2011-2023) of the FFF, Noël Le Graët, on November 7, and of the former general director (in camera), Florence Hardouin, on Thursday, Mr. Lapeyre was at length questioned about the scandals and the governance crisis at the “3F” which were the subject of a damning report, in February, from the general inspection of education, sport and research (IGESR).
“You are under oath”reminded the members of the commission on numerous occasions, annoyed by Mr. Lapeyre’s dodges. “You are the legal director, you say you are not aware (…), fumed Stéphane Buchou, vice-president (Renaissance, Vendée) of the commission. You tell us: “It’s not me, it’s my colleagues.” Who does what ? Who is piloting? Who directs ? Who makes the decisions ? Who decides what? »
If he contested “participate in the sexist climate at the federation”the legal director finally admitted, pushed to his limits, having known ” since a long time “ that “It was in Noël Le Graët’s character to have these somewhat unusual relationships with women. (…) It never exceeded certain limits, (…) not with a character of excessive seriousness. »
In a fairly tense atmosphere, and while the president of the FFF, Philippe Diallo, and other leaders interviewed are under threat of being reported to the courts for perjury before the commission of inquiry, Mr. Lapeyre demonstrated of a lack of accuracy during his hearing.
The elements of the file contradict Jean Lapeyre
And this when he was questioned about the case of former French international Angélique Roujas. Former manager and coach of the women’s center (2004-2013) at the Clairefontaine center (Yvelines), the latter was accused of sexual violence, then dismissed by the FFF for serious misconduct. “According to our information, the legal department would have opposed the FFF taking a decision to withdraw the license for Mme Roujas, in application of article 85 of the general regulations »observed the rapporteur (Hauts-de-Seine, Ecologists) Sabrina Sebaihi.
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