French Olympic swimmer Yannick Agnel is facing trial on charges of rape and sexual assault involving his former coach’s 13-year-old daughter, as confirmed by the prosecutor general’s office in Colmar.
The investigative chamber of the Colmar appeals court has ruled that the 33-year-old must stand trial for the alleged offenses, given that he was an adult at the time. Agnel has a 10-day window to contest this decision at the Court of Cassation, France’s highest court.
Agnel was taken into custody in December 2021 and acknowledged having a relationship with the underage girl, although he denied using any form of coercion.
The incidents in question reportedly occurred in 2016 when the girl was 13 and Agnel was 24, spanning various locations such as Mulhouse, Rio de Janeiro during the Olympics, Spain, and Thailand, according to French judicial authorities.
Having retired from competitive swimming in 2016, Agnel, who clinched two gold medals at the 2012 London Olympics in the 200m freestyle and 4x100m freestyle relay, is now entangled in this legal matter.
A recent law in France, effective in 2021, categorizes sexual interactions with individuals under 15 as rape, carrying a maximum penalty of 20 years behind bars, bringing the country in line with the legal frameworks of many other Western nations.