Credit card-stealing biathlete wins Olympic gold medal
An athlete convicted of credit card theft back in October has found a way to the top of the Olympic podium in Italy.
French biathlete Julia Simon took home her second Olympic gold medal during Wednesday’s women’s 15-kilometre individual event. While she now sits as an Olympic champion, it wasn’t too long ago that Simon was making headlines for her criminal behaviour.
The 29-year-old was handed a ā¬15,000 fine and a three-month suspended prison sentence last year, after admitting to stealing the credit card of teammate Justine Braisaz-Bouchet. Simon initially denied the allegations before eventually confessing.
Initial accusations had Simon spending upwards of ā¬2,000 in online purchases with Braisaz-Bouchet’s card, as well as an additional bank card belonging to a French team staff member. All the crimes were committed in 2021.
Apart from the legal consequences, Simon was also handed a six-month suspension and a ā¬30,000 fine from the French Ski Federation back in November. Those repercussions, obviously, didn’t prevent the 10-time World Champion from competing at the Olympics.
Although Simon confessed to the crimes, she said that she does not remember committing the acts.
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The controversy didn’t seem to deter Simon during her second Olympic appearance. She now has two gold medals in Italy after helping the French mixed relay team to the top of the podium earlier this week.
That gives Simon a total of three Olympic medals, after capturing silver at the Beijing 2022 Games in the mixed relay. The teammate affected by her crimes, Braisaz-Bouchet, finished in 80th place in the women’s 15-kilometre individual.
In an apparent message to her haters, Simon hushed the crowd after crossing the finish line.
Biathlon is already seen as one of the wilder sports included at the Olympic Games. It requires athletes to ski long distances before shooting at targets, and has its roots in military patrol.
There was no need to add an extra layer of eccentricity, but Simon’s wild story did just that.