Paris (AFP)

Athlete Ophélie Claude-Boxberger, who accuses her stepfather and personal assistant of having doped her without her knowledge, complained of poisoning after analyzes confirming her positive control at the EPO in September, he said. we learned Tuesday from his lawyer.

The specialist of the 3,000 meters steeplechase, 31 years old, filed a complaint Monday with the High Court of Montbéliard (Doubs) for "damage to physical integrity by administration of harmful substances", told AFP Me Laurent Clauzon.

The complaint comes after analyzes of sample B, kept after the doping control on September 18, confirmed Friday the presence of EPO in the athlete's body, according to the lawyer.

Ophélie Claude-Boxberger, originally from Montbéliard, was tested positive for EPO during a preparatory course for the World Athletics Championships at the Font-Romeu training center (Pyrénées-Orientales). Since then, she has never ceased to proclaim her innocence.

In late November, his stepfather Alain Flaccus, who is part of his sports supervision, came to strengthen his defense by accusing himself of having inoculated him with an injection of EPO without his knowledge, when she had dozed off after a massage.

A source close to the case, however, called for "caution" on this version, citing the hypothesis that Alain Flaccus has made the choice to "sacrifice himself", "the only way for her to get out" and avoid an unavoidable four-year suspension.

Questioned after the police custody of her stepfather, Ophélie Claude-Boxberger for his part denounced a "scheme". The young woman also revealed the painful past that binds him to this man, explaining that he had filed and withdrawn a complaint against him for sexual assault years earlier.

The announcement of Claude-Boxberger's positive control had triggered a storm warning over the French Athletics Federation, already weakened by poor results at the Doha Worlds (only 2 medals), a war of clans and a succession of scandals linked to doping.

The athlete's sentimental relationship with the doctor of the French athletics team, Jean-Michel Serra, responsible for his medical monitoring, had only amplified the scandal, leading the French Agency to fight against doping (AFLD) to report the facts to the Paris Prosecutor's Office, which opened an investigation on October 14.

These new revelations did not extinguish the procedure opened by the AFLD, which continues to conduct its investigation, prior to the referral to the sanctions committee.

© 2019 AFP