French Cup. The qualification of Dives-Cabourg called into question?

Eliminated by SU Dives-Cabourg in the eighth round of the French Cup (1-6), AS Dragon made a request for a medical certificate.

In the eighth round of the French Cup, SU Dives-Cabourg largely beat AS Dragon Papeete (6-1). But the Polynesian club decided to make a request for evocation against the Norman club. The reason? Alexis Jeanne's medical certificate. The former US Avranches Mont Saint-Michel and AS Cherbourg player spent two years at the University of Quebec in Montreal. When he decided to return to France, to the Normandy coast, he obtained a medical certificate in Canada from a sports therapist.

It is on this point that AS Dragon supports its request for evocation, arguing that the medical certificate was not carried out by a doctor. So what is a Sports Therapist? According to the official website of the corporation in Quebec, “a certified athletic therapist (CAT(C)) is a healthcare professional. He specializes in emergency care and the prevention, identification, intervention and management of acute or chronic musculoskeletal injuries or conditions of various origins..

In Canada, a medical certificate is not mandatory. So doctors don't do it. After contacting a French educator based in Quebec, he confirmed this information to us. “The approved sports therapist is the person who helps athletes get back on track after an injury” he tells us.

No proven fraud from SU Dives-Cabourg

What exactly do the FFF regulations say? First of all we have article 70.1 of the RG. “The adult player must pass a medical check giving rise to the issuance of a medical certificate of absence of contraindication to the practice of football, in accordance with the laws and texts in force, appearing on the license application form, mention of the production of this medical certificate being affixed to the license. » Then article 70.5 specifies that “the medical certificate is established after examination, by any doctor, following the rules of ethics”.

The medical certificate is authentic. It is therefore not a question of fraud or false declaration. “I am surprised that the Tahiti club can have access to our medical certificateswonders Stéphane Gilquin, the president of SU Dives-Cabourg. That's not how I see sport. We have never committed fraud. » The Federal Settlements and Litigation Commission will have to decide quickly. Because a thirty-second French Cup final is looming in ten days.