Sport Biathlon
Double world champion pilloried for credit card fraud
Status: 10:12 a.m. | Reading time: 2 minutes
Overall World Cup winner Julia Simon
Which: pa/NTB/Javad Parsa
Serious allegations against Julia Simon: The most successful biathlete of the season is said to have robbed people of their money. The French woman was obviously not particularly clever when it came to credit card fraud. It was reported by a teammate.
Julia Simon dominated the biathlon scene last year. After the Olympic Games in Beijing, the Frenchwoman turned up the heat on the cross-country ski trail and on the shooting range and won the overall World Cup. She finished in the top 10 in 17 of 20 races and won two gold medals at the World Championships in Oberhof. But the sporting success is overshadowed by an investigation. The 26-year-old is accused of credit card fraud, and the French association has already distanced itself from its top athlete.
According to information from “L’Equipe” and “RMC Sport”, Simon was reported by her teammate Justine Braisaz-Bouchet of all people. She and another member of the French team are said to have been victims of the scam. Last summer, Simon allegedly charged Braisaz-Bouchet’s credit card with a sum of between 1,000 and 2,000 at a rollerski event in Norway. A lower sum was moved for the other team member.
Julia Simon in the jersey of the World Cup leaders
Quelle: pa/TT NEWS AGENCY/Anders Wiklund/TT
Simon is said not to have acted particularly cleverly in the alleged fraud. He was caught because Simon used her personal email address and computer to move the money. According to “L’Equipe”, Braisaz-Bouchet tried to clarify the incident internally with Simon. But since this was unsuccessful, she decided to file a complaint against her teammate.
Simon is excluded from the team and trains individually
A hearing was held at the French association last June. “Julia Simon’s position is clear: she denies the allegations.” And further: “The version of the defense has led to the suspension of the proceedings by the association,” said Simon’s lawyer Jean-Michel Raynaud to “L’Equipe”.
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Simon is currently not wanted in the team, the distrust of his teammates is obviously too great. That’s why last winter’s best athlete has to prepare for the coming season on her own. The pronouncement of judgment will probably only clarify how things will continue with Simon in terms of sport.
