While the Blues arrived at their base camp in Rueil-Malmaison escorted by an impressive popular enthusiasm, a shadow came to tarnish this entry into the final stretch before the opening match against New Zealand. The summons of Bastien Chalureau to compensate for Paul Willemse’s package sparked a controversy due to the conviction of the second line of Montpellier for racist violence in 2020.
The person concerned had appealed, the judgment of which is still pending. On Sunday, two LFI deputies announced that they would seize the Minister of Sports, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, to challenge his selection. At the end of the day, Fabien Galthié defended his player. “We want this team to unite. Racism has no place there. Bastien informed us of this case, he firmly denies the facts. He has been coming with us for a year now, and before selecting a player, we meet him, we share with him our way of life, of playing rugby, ”replied the coach during a press conference organized at Roland Garros.
Oudéa-Castera’s response on Monday?
Relaunched, Galthié assured that this story did not affect his group, justifying himself with this sentence: “A World Cup is not for wimps. Present at his side, Antoine Dupont also defended his teammate. “We were aware. It’s going very well with him, he has an exemplary attitude and that’s our main concern today, ”explained the captain of the Blues.
Amélie Oudéa-Castera will probably be called upon to speak on this subject on Monday morning, during the press conference for the launch of the World Cup in which she must participate.