For rape and sexual assault
Serious allegations: Olympic champion is on trial
January 15, 2026 – 11:45 p.mReading time: 1 min.
France’s former top swimmer Yannick Agnel is said to have coerced and raped his coach’s then 13-year-old daughter. He denies this. Now the case is going to court.
France’s Olympic swimming champion Yannick Agnel has to answer in court. He is accused of raping and sexually assaulting his former trainer’s then 13-year-old daughter. The appeal court in Colmar, Alsace, rejected an objection by the 33-year-old against his charges, the newspaper “Les Dernières Nouvelles d”Alsace reported.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office had previously confirmed that the investigative chamber of the Colmar Higher Regional Court had brought charges against the former top athlete. The AP news agency reported on this step, among others.
The alleged acts are said to have occurred in 2016, among other places, in Mulhouse, where Agnel was training at the time. The swimmer was 24 years old at the time and his coach’s daughter was 13. She filed a complaint in 2021. Agnel denied putting pressure on the girl. It is not yet known when the trial will be scheduled.
The Frenchman retired from competitive sports in 2016. The former rival of the German ex-world champion Paul Biedermann became Olympic champion in the 200 meter freestyle in London in 2012 and with the French relay team in the 4 x 100 meter. Agnel repeated this double success at the 2013 World Cup. After several injuries, he was less and less able to continue his top performances.