Nicosia (AFP)
Cyprus is rocked by a sexual assault scandal after Olympic shooting champion Andri Eleftheriou gave the police the name of her alleged assailant, acts committed during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Allegations of this nature are rare on the Mediterranean island, where victims are afraid to come forward.
Andri Eleftheriou, 36, made the facts public in 2018 but the case was ignored.
Earlier this week, the gold medalist in skeet (former ball-trap) at the C Games in 2006 was encouraged to speak by Cypriot Minister of Justice, Emily Yiolitis.
In the process, Andri Eleftheriou said he was the victim of sexual assault by a person in a position of authority during the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in 2006 and the Olympic Games in Beijing in 2008.
Police are currently investigating the case and sports officials, including members of the Shooting Federation, have been summoned for questioning.
Andri Eleftheriou had spoken of his ordeal in the past to the media but only lodged a complaint on Thursday, after meeting with the Minister of Justice, who encouraged her to communicate the name of her attacker to the police.
"May this give others the impetus to speak out, to break the cycle of silence and to correct whatever fuels them," Ms. Yiolitis said in a statement.
The Minister of Justice called on all women victims of sexual abuse to come forward "without fear".
The Cypriot athlete said he had "the mental strength to file a complaint with the police", after expressions of support from sports associations and the minister.
Other athletes from the Cypriot Shooting Federation then complained that they had suffered similar assaults.
© 2021 AFP