Eternal opponent of the power in place at the French Rugby Federation (FFR), the Oval Together list has struck a blow. According The Parisian, the team led by Florian Grill won 11 of the 12 seats that were up for grabs. In the majority, only the former captain of the XV of France Guilhem Guirado was elected.
The 1,900 French clubs were called upon to vote electronically between Wednesday 9 a.m. and this Friday noon. A prerequisite for the election of a new president, from June 12 to 14, necessitated by the resignation on January 27 of Bernard Laporte, sentenced to two years in prison for having established a “corruption pact” with Mohed Altrad, entrepreneur and president of the Montpellier club. A sentence for which he appealed.
Missed bet for Skrela and Blanco
The opposition had resigned en bloc after Laporte’s departure, which necessitated this election, which it therefore largely won. It now weighs 11 seats out of the 40 on the steering committee, within which the future president will be elected. The prospect of cohabitation, unprecedented until now, could take shape in mid-June, less than three months before the start of the World Cup in France on September 8.
Jean-Claude Skrela and Serge Blanco for their part missed their shot. The former coach of the XV of France and the ex-president of the National Rugby League (LNR) presented themselves as independent candidates, after having left Ovale Ensemble whose orientations and strategy they contested, in particular the resignation en bloc at the end of January. According The Parisianthey ranked 19th and 25th respectively in the polls which ended on Friday.