Chalureau affair: “I don’t want the end of his career”, victim of the French rugby player, Larguet confides

2023-11-22 10:35:05

He finally broke the silence. Yannick Larguet, 43, one of Bastien Chalureau’s two alleged victims, spoke in the columns of The Team a week after the appeal trial of the French international. The former Colomiers and Agen player wanted to speak after once again hearing the wholesale denials from the second line of Montpellier.

“When I read that he claims that the victims are lying and when I hear that this story is nothing other than a fight, an altercation… It’s not the truth,” says Yannick Larguet. On January 31, 2020 in the city center of Toulouse, Bastien Chalureau attacked two men including Yannick Larguet after saying “that’s okay, the bougnoules”, which the 31-year-old player has always refuted.

“Everyone knows, but no one acts”

Selected with the French XV for the World Cup, the Montpellier native was judged on appeal last week. Eight months suspended prison sentence was requested against him. “I kept silent during the World Cup, even though I was extremely solicited,” explained one of his victims to justify his silence. The World Cup in France is an incredible opportunity, supporting and preserving the French team was my priority. I also tried to protect my family. But this is no longer possible. »

Yannick Larguet said he was above all “shocked” by “this latent hypocrisy of the media, the authorities, and, finally, by the anachronistic and late side of the controversy”. “We must also absolutely flee and move away from this truth which is not a truth: Racism does not exist in rugby. This is not true. Ask kids of color, some professionals. (…) Everyone knows, but no one acts,” he added, always for The team.

Yannick Larguet hopes at all costs that Bastien Chalureau recognizes the racist nature of this attack. “I don’t want his career to end. I insist on one point: I deeply believe in second chances, he repeats. He recognized his problems with violence and alcohol, he worked with a psychologist to evolve. But, for the moment, I am not giving him this second chance, because he has not recognized the racist motive. » The decision of the appeal trial was reserved until January 16.