Between Bernard Giudicelli and Gilles Moretton, a tense match at the Tennis Federation

In this year when all certainties are shattered, where players heave in front of empty stands, and where Roland-Garros was played in autumn, certain traditions of French tennis seem immutable. Admittedly, the election to the presidency of the French Tennis Federation (FFT), which was to be held on December 12, had to be postponed until February 13, 2021, in view of “The epidemiological state of our country”, argued the executive committee of the FFT in early November.

But the battle between the outgoing president, Bernard Giudicelli, and the other contender for the throne, Gilles Moretton, former professional player and boss of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes league, turns over the weeks into a match of (low ) baseline.

Article reserved for our subscribers Read also Gilles Moretton taking on French tennis

As often in recent years, the leaders of French tennis exchange volleys without restraint, in a deleterious atmosphere. “The stink ball festival has started”, sums up a good connoisseur of the Arcana of the Federation. In addition to the incessant provocations by the press interposed between the two candidates who do not appreciate each other, some accounts should be settled before the highest authorities of the FFT.

Charge of conflict of interest

By two letters dated November 13, that The world was able to consult, Bernard Giudicelli seized the federal litigation commission, in order to alert it to two cases in particular. The first concerns the Paris committee of the Ile-de-France league, and more specifically one of its strongmen, Hughes Cavallin, who was the general treasurer of the FFT from 2017 to November 4, after the executive committee of the FFT terminated its functions“For loss of confidence”, according to Cavallin.

Mr. Giudicelli accuses the Paris committee of having, without respecting the federal regulations, “Sold tickets for the Roland-Garros tournament (2019 edition) directly, without going through the resale platform set up by the FFT, for the benefit of the company in which the company is a shareholder” by M. Cavallin. The latter, Agnès Bourguignon, runs AS Events, a company that organizes events.

In his letter of referral, Mr. Giudicelli also criticizes his former treasurer general for not having informed the authorities about his situation and that of his partner, which testifies, according to him, “Mr. Hughes Cavallin’s deep disinterest in the prevention of conflicts of interest”. “In this case, however, there is a manifest conflict of interest, continues the referral, between, on the one hand, the interest of the company AS Events, of which the partner of Mr. Hughes Cavallin is associated, to have Roland-Garros tickets, or even to generate a profit margin on their resale on a secondary basis, and , on the other hand, the interest of the FFT to have its treasurer identify all the shortcomings ” compliance with federal rules and general ticket sales conditions.

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