Florian Grill, president of the French Rugby Federation, and Jean-Marc Lhermet, his vice-president, traveled to Mendoza and back on Wednesday, accompanied by Rafael Cuneo Libarona, the lawyer for Hugo Auradou and Oscar Jegou. “We met with a right-hand man of the prosecutor and the woman in charge of the case so that our lawyer could start to discuss a certain number of facts that contradict the version widely described in the Argentinian media following the statements of the alleged victim,” explains Grill. “We are neither judges nor investigators. We trust the Argentinian justice system, but we hope that the players and their lawyer will have the opportunity to highlight these potential contradictions as soon as possible. Knowing that there is another meeting between the lawyer on Thursday and the prosecutor during which he will list all the points that raise questions.”
The questions that have emerged around both versions concern the timing of Oscar Jegou’s arrival in the hotel room and the alleged violence widely described in the Argentine media during the sexual relations.
Reached by telephone on Wednesday evening around 8 p.m. (1 a.m. in France), Florian Grill insisted that the approach was not to draw conclusions before the investigation work of the Argentine justice system, but to speed up a procedure that can take between 5 and 25 days before deciding on a release under supervision. In view of the contradictions between the two versions, the delegation that took over the defense of Auradou and Jegou observed that the case deserved to be dealt with quickly. “Even if we are in a vacation period here, we want things to move quickly,” insisted the president of the FFR. That was the purpose of our trip to Mendoza.”
The last contact between Florian Grill, Jean-Marc Lhermet and the two internationals was on Tuesday morning. Patrick Arlettaz and Rodrigo Roncero were able to visit them late Wednesday evening to bring them new clothes and food. During the day, they would live surrounded by about thirty other defendants, and in the evening, the two of them in a small cell. “With Jean-Marc, we are trying to move things forward as quickly as possible without rushing any steps. It is of course important to give the complainant a chance to speak, but it is now important to give it to the two defendants.”
“The type of management, autonomy and accountability, […] does not work “
Florian Grill, President of the FFR
In the midst of this affair, the Federation is trying to keep families informed through Jean-Marc Lhermet: “Our role is to stay in touch with parents and clubs. To inform everyone of the progress of the procedure. We are trying to maintain the link and answer their questions.” Leaders are aware that this episode, after that of the racist video of Melvyn Jaminet, must call for introspection, and perhaps, a change in culture.
Until now, the operating mode implemented within the French teams is “a head of delegation and a team manager who are, at present, Bernard Viviès and Mathieu Brauge, explains Grill. The type of management is a principle that Jean-Marc and I have rather adhered to. It was to say: autonomy and accountability, with more experienced players who hold the group together. In this case, we have a proven example, with Melvyn Jaminet (sent back to France following the publication on social networks of a video in which he makes racist remarks), that this does not work, and at least a second since, without predicting the results of the investigation, the evening (in Mendoza) was in any case too alcoholic in view of a trip by the French team.”
A subject that will therefore be dealt with upon returning from Argentina. “We need to question it but not alone,” added the FFR boss. “We need to deal with it with the staff, the LNR, Provale (the players’ union), the players. I don’t believe in a solution that would fall from above. It needs to be shared. These events must push us to review the operation and reset the counters to zero.”
