The trial of an amateur rugby player for a dangerous tackle which left young Mathias Dantin quadriplegic in 2022 was held this Tuesday at the criminal court of Tarbes (Hautes-Pyrénées). Eighteen months suspended prison sentence was requested against the alleged attacker.
A reunion in court, two years almost to the day after a terrible tragedy. This Tuesday in Tarbes, the young Mathias Dantin (18 years old), an amateur player who became quadriplegic after having suffered a delayed “cathedral tackle” during a UNSS match, found his attacker in the correctional facility, a Toulouse man now aged 20 years, during a highly anticipated trial in the region.
Trial during which an eighteen-month suspended prison sentence was requested against the defendant (the judgment will be rendered on February 18), after a long examination of the facts.
“He’s a player whose aggressive side I had already noticed”
This Wednesday, December 14, 2022, a rugby sevens match between two high schools in the Hautes-Pyrénées comes to an end when Mathias Dantin, 16 years old at the time, is the victim of a bad tackle. The young man hit in the neck does not get up. Since then, diagnosed as “incomplete quadriplegic”, he has been living in an automated wheelchair, specifying that he has lost the use of his lower limbs and only enjoys very partial mobility of his arms.
At the bar of the Tarbes criminal court, the young man who received the support of the XV of France or certain players from Stade Toulouse, came to ask that his damage be fully recognized and fairly compensated. “I suffered an attack. He is a player whose aggressive side I had already noticed during a previous UNSS (National School Sports Union) tournament. Like me, he played in a club and had a higher level than the other students. He wanted to show it (…) And by dint of wanting to show, when you don’t master it, what happened to me happens,” lamented Mathias.
“I admire his strength and courage”
Facing him, the defendant defended himself from any intentional violence. “Since this accident, rugby is over for me. It has even become complicated to watch a match,” he explained in court. His lawyer, Pascal Nakache, spoke of “a clumsy and dramatic gesture” but “which at no time intended to hurt the victim”. The tragedy pushed the UNSS to suspend the practice of rugby under its auspices for a month.
At the end of the debates, the accused – who has never attempted to contact Mathias Dantin since the events – nevertheless wanted to pay tribute to the victim. “I admire his strength and his courage,” he breathed. “I’m sorry.”
