France player misses out on silver medal in Olympics football due to little-known rule implemented by FIFA
France player Theo De Percin missed out on receiving a silver medal at the Olympics in Paris even after his team finished second in the competition. Thierry Henry's team, who were among the favorites to win the tournament, lost out 5-3 to Spain in the final.
While most of the Les Blues squad were handed a silver medal on the podium, De Percin was the only one who was left without the prize. This is because the tournament regulations state that a player who hasn't made an appearance on the pitch or the substitutes' bench will not be awarded a medal.
The Auxerre goalkeeper was named in France's squad but was a standby in case of injuries. Article 30.1 from the Olympic Football Tournament regulations reads (via SPORTbible):
"Should an alternate player replace a player and appear on the start list, said alternate player will also obtain a medal should their team finish first, second, or third in the Tournaments, in addition to the replaced player."
Obed Nkambadio and Guillaume Restes were the goalkeepers who were named in the starting XI and on the bench for Henry's side throughout the tournament. Therefore, it resulted in De Percin not getting a look in.
To date, the 23-year-old has made 38 appearances across competitions for his club team, keeping 14 clean sheets in the process. Auxerre will get their league campaign underway against Nice on Sunday (August 18).
Thierry Henry reacts to France's Olympics final defeat to Spain
Thierry Henry lavished praise on his France team despite losing the final of the Olympics to Spain. The team did show fight and character, coming from 3-1 down to level the game and take it to extra time.
Eventually, La Roja netted twice in the additional period to secure the gold medal. Following the defeat, Henry was highly appreciative of his players and said (via GOAL):
"There is one thing that is super important to me, it is that the team fought. We played a match, at the beginning we did not have the impression that it was going to be a match, and we made it match where it was decided by very little. But we cannot say this team did not fight."
"And so this group, whatever happens, we know that we will never find ourselves together again like that, it's just impossible, we know that, but this group is for life for me."
Spain have registered back-to-back successes in international competitions by winning the Olympics. They also managed to win the European Championships this summer.