Yannick Agnel won two Olympic gold medals in swimming for France at the 2012 London Summer Games.
Published January 15, 2026
French double Olympic swimming gold medalist Yannick Agnel will go on trial on charges of rape and sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl after his appeal was rejected on Thursday.
In May, a French lawyer appealed the decision to charge the 33-year-old man, but the Court of Appeal in Colmar, northeastern France, rejected the request and ordered the trial to proceed.
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Agnel, who won two gold medals at the 2012 London Games, is suspected of having an affair with a 13-year-old girl in 2016.
Agnel has always maintained that the relationship was consensual and loving.
According to prosecutors, the incidents in question occurred between December 31, 2015 and August 31, 2016 in various locations including Mulhouse, Thailand and Tenerife.
Following an investigation, the swimmer was charged five months later in December 2021.
Agnel always denied that she had any authority to control the teenager.
The prosecutor at the time, Edwige Roux-Morizot, believed that the facts amounted to age-based rape and sexual assault because the judicial system considers there to be a genuine moral compulsion.
In July 2024, the swimmer, who retired in 2016, attended a meeting he had requested with his accuser, who is now in his early 20s.
Agnel rose to international prominence by winning gold in the 400m freestyle at the 2010 European Championships, setting new French and championship records.
Two years later, he competed in the London Olympics, winning gold in the 200m freestyle and 4x100m freestyle relay, and silver in the 4x200m freestyle relay as well.
He won gold in the same two events at the 2013 World Championships.
Agnel qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics to defend her 200m freestyle title, but was unable to overcome the heat and announced her retirement from swimming shortly after.
