Rugby is not the easiest sport to understand at first glance. Between its rules which evolve every year and its complex phases of play, a novice eye may have some difficulty following the course of a match. The one that takes place from Friday October 18 is simpler: for two days, the presidents of the clubs in France will elect the president of the French Rugby Federation (FFR). Candidate for his own succession, Florian Grill is opposed to Didier Codorniou.
Mayor (PRG) of Gruissan (Aude) and vice-president of the Occitanie regional council, the latter assures that the two men had agreed, at the start of the campaign, to“a non-aggression pact” who doesn’t have “not been respected”. In mid-September, information on Didier Codorniou came out, specifying that he was the subject of two criminal investigations: one linked to the award of public contracts which led to a search of his town hall, the other after the death of a 2 and a half year old child following a carousel accident in his town in 2018 – the Narbonne prosecutor requested a dismissal of the case in this second case. “For me, there is no business”says Didier Codorniou.
Read also | The investigation into the disappearance at sea in South Africa of a young French rugby player is now being investigated for manslaughter
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“These stink balls arrive as if by chance in the middle of the countryside,” engages the former center of the France team (31 caps), accusing “the Parisian sphere” to be at the origin. It’s hard not to see this statement as a direct attack on Florian Grill, long-time president of the Ile-de-France league. A few days earlier, Didier Codorniou and his team had already criticized the current president of the FFR over his management of the last tour of the Blues.
Three affairs during the summer
This summer, Florian Grill found himself at the heart of a storm, a consequence of the racist remarks made by Melvyn Jaminet, the accusations of aggravated rape to which Oscar Jégou and Hugo Auradou are the subject, and the disappearance at sea of the young international under-18s Medhi Narjissi, in South Africa. “It’s always sad to argue about a tragedy,” Florian Grill replied.
The race for the presidency of the FFR did not need this painful news to increase tensions. For several weeks, the two candidates scoured France meeting club presidents with the cumbersome presence of Bernard Laporte in the background. Boss of French rugby from December 2016 to January 2023, the current sporting director of Montpellier Hérault Rugby resigned after being sentenced to two years in prison and a fine of 75,000 euros for corruption. He appealed, and has since given his embarrassing support to Didier Codorniou.
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