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The under-fire president of Frances ice skating federation Didier Gailhaguet resigned on Saturday over a damaging sex abuse scandal.
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French sports minister Roxana Maracineanu on Monday asked Gailhaguet to resign after several figure skaters claimed they were raped or sexually assaulted when they were minors by former coaches.
“In the spirit of conciliation I took the sensible decision to resign with philosophy, dignity but no bitterness,” the 66-year-old announced after a meeting of the federations federal council in Paris.
On Wednesday, Gailhaguet refused to step down, saying he had made “mistakes” but that he was never “at fault”.
French prosecutors on Tuesday launched a preliminary investigation into former figure skating coach Gilles Beyer for the alleged rape of a minor and sexual aggression.
Former figure skater Sarah Abitbol, a bronze medallist with partner Stephane Bernadis at the 2000 world championships, recently published a book in which she said Beyer had raped her multiple times from 1990 to 1992.
Beyer last week said that he had had “intimate” and “inappropriate” relations with Abibtol, who is now 44, in comments to Agence France Presse. His lawyers on Friday said in a statement he “reserved his comments for the prosecutors”.
Three other skaters also claimed they were raped by former coaches.
Gailhaguet had been president of the FFSG since 1998 with a gap between 2004-07 after he was suspended by the International Skating Union for his role in a judging scandal at the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City.
Beyer was the team manager of a French juniors team at the 2011 world championships despite a Sports ministry-led inquiry from 2000 showing that the former coach had inappropriate behaviour with an underage skater.
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