French rugby bosses suspend World Cup star Jaminet after racist remark in video

French full-back Melvyn Jaminet faced the end of his international career on Monday after a video emerged in which he made a racist remark.

Jaminet, 25, who plays for RC Toulon in the south of France, came on as a last-minute substitute in France’s 28-13 win over Argentina at the Estadio Malvinas Argentinas on Saturday.

A few hours after the match in Mendoza, a video was released in which Jaminet can be heard saying: “The first Arab I see on the street, I’ll punch in the head.”

The video was picked up by politician Sébastien Delogu of La France insoumise and widely shared on social media.

The French Rugby Federation (FFR) condemned the comments in a statement published on X, calling them unacceptable and contrary to the core values ​​of the sport.

It was said that Jaminet would be out with immediate effect and would leave the French team’s South American tour.

Jaminet began his professional career in 2019 at French Pro 2 club Perpignan. When he moved to top team Toulouse in 2022, he had already made his breakthrough in the French national team.

At the start of the 2023 season, he moved to Toulon and was part of the French World Cup team that lost to South Africa in the quarter-finals.

The Federation leadership announced that it would launch an investigation into the incident.

“Discriminatory behaviour of any kind has no place in French rugby,” the FFR statement continued.

Jaminet, who has played 20 times for his country, apologized on social media shortly after his suspension was announced.

Read more on RFI English

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