Athlete Wilfried Happio convicted of domestic violence
The French 400-metre hurdler has been sentenced to six months in prison with a suspended sentence for violence against his former partner. He announces the end of his sporting career.
Conviction and end of career
According to 20minutes.fr, the Créteil district court found Wilfried Happio, 28, guilty of domestic violence committed between 2018 and 2019 against Hajar Hajjia Goncalves. The 400-metre hurdler, European vice-champion in 2022 and participant in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, received on Wednesday a sentence of six months' imprisonment fully suspended. The court also ordered him to pay €2,000 in damages to the victim and imposed a two-year ban on all contact with her.
Happio admitted during the hearing to facts of verbal violence, claiming to be "the first person responsible" for a "toxic relationship". He rejected accusations of physical violence, however. Hajar Hajjia Goncalves had told Le Monde in July 2024, with photographic evidence, that she had suffered "a huge punch to the head" and other assaults. Her lawyer, Ms Lina Belkora, declared that "the court has rendered an important decision today" in recalling that no violence "can be tolerated within a couple".
On Wednesday evening, the complainant said she was "relieved" by the conviction, while regretting that the suspect had not admitted the facts: "We know how difficult it is to take this kind of matter all the way." The court accepted not to record the conviction on item number 2 of Happio's criminal record, contrary to the request of the prosecution which had sought 12 months' imprisonment with a suspended sentence over five years.
Disciplinary proceedings and withdrawal from sport
The French Athletics Federation (FFA) had launched an internal disciplinary procedure in 2024 following the publication of the testimony in the press. Despite this procedure, the institution had relied on the presumption of innocence to maintain Happio's selection for the Paris Olympic Games, where he was eliminated during the semi-finals.
The athlete had also been the subject of a complaint for sexual assault for acts committed at Insep, filed without further action in June 2023. An Insep internal investigation six months earlier had not resulted in any sanction. More recently, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) suspended him for eighteen months in 2025 for failures to meet anti-doping location obligations. This sanction ended on 29 July.
On Wednesday, before the judge, Happio announced the definitive end to his professional athletic career. "The timing of the publication of Le Monde's article, just before the Paris Olympics, was devastating for me," he explained. "It completely destroyed me and put me off elite sport." He clarified that a competition had taken place the summer before without training, but that running in a stadium "where you are poorly received, that does not bring performance". At 28 years old, Wilfried Happio is ending a career marked by several controversies and investigations.
Source: Le Monde - Justice