French authorities have released an Egyptian wrestler who was arrested by police in the early hours of Friday on suspicion of sexual assault outside a Paris cafe, a senior Egyptian Olympic Committee official told Reuters on Saturday.
The Paris prosecutor’s office said the wrestler was arrested on suspicion of harassment.
Abdel Aziz Ghoneim, treasurer of the Egyptian Olympic Committee and head of the Egyptian Boxing Federation, told Reuters: “Officials of the Egyptian delegation participating in the Paris Olympics have completed all procedures related to the release of Egyptian wrestler Mohamed El-Sayed Kishou, who was arrested at dawn on Friday on charges of harassing a French girl.”
The official added that the release decision came after an agreement with the French authorities led by Ashraf Sobhi, the Egyptian Minister of Youth and Sports, who is in Paris, the Egyptian ambassador to France and the head of the Egyptian Olympic Committee. He said that the wrestler will be deported immediately today to Cairo pending internal investigations that could lead to severe penalties, including permanent disqualification.
He added that the wrestler involved in the incident “is known among his colleagues for his good character, and it is strange that he did this, but internal investigations will reveal all the circumstances to close this file once and for all.”
Kishu had previously won a bronze medal at the Tokyo 2021 Games but lost in Paris in the early stages.
The Egyptian Olympic Committee issued a statement yesterday saying that Yasser Idris, the committee’s chairman, decided to refer wrestler Kishu to the Committee of Bodies, Clubs and Values for his alleged “irresponsible” actions, after his participation in the Olympic Games ended, and hours before his return flight to Egypt.
The statement added, “The head of the Wrestling Federation reported that Kisho left the mission with the permission of the head of the wrestling delegation to watch the final match in his weight class and did not return to the mission headquarters and turned off his phone. The head of the Egyptian Olympic Committee called on the Committee of Bodies, Clubs and Values to “strictly apply the regulations against the player and any other official in the wrestling delegation who is proven responsible for these actions.”
The statement continued, “If the player’s violation is proven, the penalty may reach final deletion and exclusion from playing the game locally and internationally.”
