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Bordeaux - France's 800m world champion Pierre-Ambroise Bosse has been charged for his role in an altercation last August during which he was wounded, prosecutors in Bordeaux said on Thursday.
A man of 24 was charged on September 1 last year for attacking Bosse in a casino car park in Gujan-Mestras, in the southwest of France where the runner has trained since childhood. The injuries ended the athlete's season.
The attacker in turn filed a complaint against Bosse, accusing him of provoking the brawl by throwing a beer can, leading to the widening of the investigation.
Bosse was charged on February 26 in Bordeaux for "violence with the use of, or the threatened use of, a weapon that did not cause injuries serious enough to render the victim incapable of work."
The weapon in this case was the beer can, the prosecution indicated on Thursday, confirming a report in the regional daily Sud-Ouest.
On August 30, Bosse, who is 25, announced on Facebook that he had been the victim of a "violent aggression" three days earlier, suffering impressive facial injuries. He said he "almost lost an eye" and was going to skip the one event he had left on his schedule, the DecaNation in the French city of Angers.
The alleged aggressor did not deny that he punched Bosse in the car park where the runner had been conducting an impromptu autograph and selfie session at 4am.
The accused lodged a complaint saying that the altercation started when the athlete threw a can at his head, which he managed to deflect with his arm - leaving it bruised.
Talking recently on French radio, Bosse said the incident occurred on "the first night I was celebrating the medal" won in London on August 8.
"These are things that happen at night," Bosse said. "Apparently there are people who take alcohol very badly. I've always found alcohol joyous."
Bosse said he could not go into the details because the investigation was continuing but added that he found it "extraordinary to be apparently the aggressor now."
In an earlier interview Bosse said: "My attackers? I knew one of them. It's not a personal history, it's more the fact that there are dangerous people who have to understand that they're dangerous.
"They hit my head. They put my life as an athlete in danger. I am a non-violent person."
