The crisis facing karate is neither new nor confined to France. For years, much of the international karate world has been shut out of the benefits of the Olympic movement, while those inside, under organizations claiming to support athletes, continue to enforce monopoly and favoritism.

Sandrine Barbarin calls the French karate community’s long tolerance of Francis Didier deeply troubling. Didier led the federation for two decades and held most senior posts in both the European and World Karate Federations. Barbarin believes that without reforms introduced by France’s Ministry of Sports, Didier would still be running French karate today.

An experienced sports lawyer and elected director of the French National Karate Federation, Barbarin has played a central role in recent reforms. Her efforts contributed to bringing scrutiny to the sport, prompting Marie Barsacq, the then French Minister of Sports, to appear twice before the Senate to answer questions about corruption in karate.

The French Karate Federation presidential elections, held from December 5 to 12, 2024, were conducted under new Ministry of Sports rules that barred Didier from seeking a sixth term. Didier and his secretary general, Philippe Dherbecourt, backed Bruno Verfaillie, a move that led rival candidate Gilles Cherdieu to pursue legal action. The courts eventually annulled the election.

Despite this, Verfaillie quickly secured the support of Antonio Espinos and was appointed to the board of the European Karate Federation. The move came even as the CNOSF, France’s National Olympic Committee, refused to recognize his presidency or validate the election results.

Today, the French Karate Federation teeters on the brink of bankruptcy, facing a financial loss of €1.600 million. Francis Didier’s influence remains deeply felt in the country’s karate scene, and the upcoming elections could easily be swayed by such power.

The interview with Sandrine, presented in a question-and-answer format below, sheds light on many of the issues that had long remained unclear. This is the second time I have interviewed her. Our first discussion, published in October 2024, revealed the courage of a determined woman who set out to challenge the systematic corruption within karate. Over the past year, she has stood firm in her effort to clear the dark clouds hanging over the sport. Francis Didier eventually admitted to parts of his wrongdoing, while Bruno Verfaillie was left with no choice but to resign.

Thank you, Sandrine, for taking the time to speak with me once again. A year has passed since our previous interview, and your efforts have borne fruit. Could you please explain what key factors led the court to annul the French Karate Federation’s elections?

Indeed, the Judicial Court of Nanterre rendered a very clear and detailed judgment on October 24, 2025, declaring the presidential election of the French Karate Federation, held in December 2024, invalid.

The Court found that the Federation had breached the principles of neutrality, fairness, and transparency which are mandatory in any democratic electoral process, especially within a sports federation entrusted with a public mission.

More precisely, the judgment established that federal communication tools, such as the official magazine, website, and social networks, were used to promote one candidate, while denying equal access to the others. The Court also noted an explicit endorsement by the former president, published on the official website during the campaign, which seriously compromised the fairness of the vote.

These practices were considered serious violations of electoral integrity, justifying the annulment of the election and the appointment of two independent judicial officers (mandataires ad hoc) to supervise the next process.

This ruling was not a surprise. It simply confirms the findings already expressed months earlier by the French National Olympic and Sports Committee in its conciliation opinion of March 2025, which had identified the same breaches of neutrality and equality. In other words, the warning signs were clear, yet ignored. The Federation chose confrontation over correction, resulting in months of lost time and considerable legal costs, paid by the Federation, its clubs, and its members.

This is particularly serious given the Federation’s fragile financial situation, already weakened by the very same unethical practices that distorted the previous campaign. The judgment therefore serves as both a legal sanction and a financial warning: no organization can afford to sacrifice ethics without consequence.

This is not a matter of opinion; it is a binding court decision, which confirms the Fédération executive office’s failure to uphold fairness, equality, and transparency, the foundation of any legitimate governance.

The Federation itself, as an institution recognized by the State and entrusted with a public service mission, is in fact a victim of these behaviors. The problem does not come from its clubs, members, or volunteers, but from a handful of individuals who have forgotten, or perhaps never understood, what it means to lead a delegated federation. It entails duties, accountability, and ethical responsibility, not personal power or privilege.

This ruling is therefore both a legitimate sanction and an opportunity for renewal. It reminds everyone that federal governance must be grounded in law, transparency, and ethics, and serve the sole interest of clubs and practitioners, not those of a few leaders.

I understand that the French National Olympic Committee had already refused to recognize Bruno Verfaillie’s presidency long before the court ruling. Why didn’t the French Ministry of Sports take stronger action in this matter?

You are absolutely right. The French National Olympic and Sports Committee (CNOSF) had already, as early as March 2025, issued a conciliation opinion concluding that the December 2024 presidential election had not been conducted in accordance with the principles of neutrality, fairness, and integrity.

The CNOSF identified serious breaches of electoral integrity, including the use of federal resources for partisan purposes and the lack of neutrality within the Federation’s leadership. It even recommended holding a new election under strengthened ethical supervision.

Yet, despite this official and detailed warning, the French Ministry of Sports took no immediate action. It chose to wait for the judicial process to unfold before intervening, allowing a leadership already discredited by the CNOSF to remain in place for several more months, deepening the institutional and moral crisis within the Federation.

This delay has come at a cost: time wasted, financial resources lost, and a growing climate of distrust among clubs and members, even as the Federation faces a critical financial situation, with a multi-million-euro deficit resulting from years of mismanagement and these very same unethical practices.

What makes this inaction even harder to understand is that the Ministry has long possessed all the material evidence, evidence relating to the unfair conduct of Francis Didier and Bruno Verfaillie during the 2024 campaign; but also long-standing documentation of misappropriation, breaches of trust, falsification, and other irregular financial practices within the Federation.

These elements were formally reported, documented, and transmitted through official channels. Failing to act in the face of such evidence is incomprehensible, and could, at the very least, be viewed as a form of passive complicity or administrative negligence. The Ministry had both the power and the duty to act. By choosing not to, it failed in its responsibility as the guardian of legality and integrity in French sport. Waiting for the civil courts to perform the work that should have been done by the public authorities amounts to a moral and political abdication.

The court’s ruling of October 24, 2025, therefore comes as no surprise: it confirms, almost word for word, the findings and reasoning already established by the CNOSF seven months earlier. What could have been resolved early through adherence to basic ethical principles has instead been settled in court, at great cost in time, energy, and money for the Federation, its clubs, and its members.

In such a serious and well-documented context, the Ministry’s inaction raises profound questions. Because to do nothing, when one holds proof of wrongdoing, is to allow the system to persist at the expense of ethics, justice, and the very values of sport.

In the past, I published a photo showing the Federation’s General Secretary openly campaigning for Verfaillie in the previous elections, an act that was clearly against the rules. What has happened to him and to similar violations within the French karate structure?

The situation you mention is, unfortunately, not an isolated one. During the 2024 presidential campaign, several senior officials, including the Secretary General, openly supported one candidate, in clear violation of the neutrality principle that applies to all federal executives.

These facts were officially recorded by the French National Olympic and Sports Committee in its conciliation opinion of March 2025, and later confirmed by the Judicial Court of Nanterre in its ruling of October 24, 2025, which annulled the election precisely on those grounds.

The most striking development came later. In late August 2025, Francis Didier himself, the former president of the Federation, sent a written confession, acknowledging the electoral manipulations and unlawful practices that led to the annulment.

Yet, despite this explicit admission, no disciplinary action has been taken. He remains in office, as president of the CSDGE (the Commission in charge of ranks and dan promotions), and continues to take part in official Federation events.

This total lack of accountability from the Executive Board reveals a deep institutional failure, but it can also be explained by the structural flaw that maintains impunity.

Under the current statutes, the Executive Board itself holds the authority to initiate disciplinary proceedings against federal officials, while the Ethics and Deontology Committee, although it technically has the power to self-refer cases, is appointed by the sitting president and therefore structurally dependent on the very governance it is supposed to oversee.

In practice, this creates a constant conflict of interest, which neutralizes any genuine use of its self-referral powers, especially when the alleged misconduct involves senior officials.The system is therefore locked from within, perpetuating impunity by design.

Of course, the criminal investigation is ongoing, and such proceedings take time, understandably so, given the scope and complexity of the corruption case.But the internal disciplinary process should have been launched long ago, since it depends solely on the Federation’s will.The fact that it hasn’t been shows that some of those empowered to act are themselves implicated.

It is now urgent for the Ministry of Sports to reform the standard statutes governing national sports federations, to establish independent, impartial, and conflict-free disciplinary procedures, including through external and independent appointments to ethics committees. Without such reform, no internal ethics system can function credibly.

I can imagine that the systemic influence of Francis Didier in French and world karate, which has also been marked by corruption, will not disappear overnight with a court decision. Given such a network, how can you be confident that the next President of the French Karate Federation will be able to move things forward effectively? What guarantees exist that the next President will not become entangled in similar corruption?

As a matter of fact, the lasting influence of Francis Didier and his network will not vanish overnight.The issue is not only about one man, but about a system of domination, corruption, influence, and omerta that has taken root over many years.

The recent court decision represents an essential legal and moral milestone, but it will not be enough, especially since the Ministry of Sports has remained passive, despite having long been aware of the irregularities and abuses that have affected the Federation.

The only possible way forward is from within: through a new leadership that is uncompromising on law, integrity, transparency, respect, and the protection of licensees, especially minors.

This leadership must break with the culture of fear, control, and authoritarianism, and replace it with a collective, participative, and transparent model that serves clubs, athletes, and volunteers.The goal is to do exactly the opposite of what has been done so far, instead of keeping local officials uninformed to control them, we must inform, educate, and support them so they can act responsibly and ethically.

A federal integrity and ethics plan must now be implemented with that purpose in mind.
-Targeted disciplinary measures to restore trust within territorial structures affected by unethical practices;
-Information and training programs to strengthen ethical and legal awareness among leaders and officials;
-And the creation of an internal resource and support unit to guide those holding responsibilities in their daily compliance and ethical decisions.

This approach will rely on the standards and guidance of the French Anti-Corruption Agency, whose publications offer an excellent framework for rebuilding transparent governance. This is not a personal project, it is a shared vision, supported by many within the Federation who genuinely want reform and integrity.

The objective is simple; to build a Federation that protects, educates, and empowers, rather than one that intimidates or manipulates.

And I will continue to stand for that goal, with or without the next president’s support, because integrity is not negotiable.

Thanks again Sandrine
You’re welcome Farzad