Olympia suspicion of sexual harassment
Father of Olympic champion apparently arrested in Paris
Status: 23:59 | Reading time: 2 minutes
Barbara Matic won gold on Wednesday
Source: REUTERS
According to media reports, the father of Croatian Olympic champion Barbara Matic is in police custody. He is said to have sexually harassed a volunteer in the arena where the judo competitions take place. He is said to have done this while his daughter was fighting.
On Wednesday, Croatian judoka Barbara Matic was able to celebrate her gold medal in the under 70 kg weight class – now news about her father is overshadowing the hard-fought victory. He was taken into police custody on Thursday because he is suspected of sexually harassing a volunteer. The young woman was responsible for the seating of the spectators. She filed a complaint. This is reported by several French media outlets.
According to reports, the young woman had been working on the grounds of the Champs-de-Mars arena, where the judo competitions take place. She told the police that Matic’s father forcibly kissed her – at the moment his daughter had won the quarter-finals. She tried to push him back, but was unsuccessful. The 24-year-old immediately went to the police station of the 7th arrondissement of Paris, which is responsible for the Olympic training center for judokas, writes “Le Parisien”.
Witness observed the scene
Another woman who witnessed the scene confirmed the incident to the police. She explained that the woman tried to push the man away, but he eventually managed to kiss her. The volunteer was speechless and pale.
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On Wednesday evening, the police apparently summoned the father to a hearing on Thursday morning. Upon his arrival, he was taken into police custody. Matic, the two-time judo world champion who made history with her first Olympic judo medal for Croatia, has not yet commented on the incident.
