He was 36 years old and father of three children. This day in December 2020, Yoann Essirard came to help his brother take care of the Moustoir lawn during the football match between FC Lorient and Stade Rennais. In a stadium emptied of its supporters by the Covid-19, the fall of a heating ramp had caused a stir. The substitute players who participated in a scrub had seen everything from the accident, which had cost the life of Yoann Essirard.
While moving a heated gantry, this football enthusiast had seen the imposing device fall on him, a few minutes after the final whistle. On Monday, the court sentenced two leaders to six months in prison, considering that they had a share of responsibility in this accident.
Based in Vendée, the company Sportingsols employed three employees for the maintenance of the lawn. Each of the three employees could invite a relative to help with the restoration of the land. That evening, Yoann Essirard had been invited by his brother, an employee of the company. On Monday, the two general managers of Sportingsols, Robert Jobard and Loïc Paul, were found guilty of lack of training and provision of equipment but also of concealed work. They were sentenced on Monday to six months in prison suspended and eleven fines of 500 euros, or one per civil party employee, including the widow of the deceased volunteer.
Prosecuted as a legal entity for manslaughter, Sportingsols was sentenced to a fine of 90,000 euros for the offense of manslaughter and 22,000 euros (eleven times 2,000 euros) for breaches of the Labor Code.