His name is Jean-Paul Ndjoli, a 21-year-old Franco-Congolese striker from Évreux who plays in the Spanish third division in the Hercules club.
Last Sunday, he had the worst experience of his life on the lawn of Torrent (1-0).
Victim of repeated racist insults from an opposing defender, he delivers an edifying testimony.
What happened last Sunday?
JEAN-PAUL NDJOLI.
We were playing Torrent.
And the start of the match was normal between this defender and me.
Classic duels.
He then started to insult me but, let's say that these were also quite usual words in football.
“Son of b…Go n…your mother.
But then it got worse.
That is to say ?
He started with "dirty black."
And then he said to me, "Dirty black, I dream of planting your sister like the black slaves."
It was very shocking.
I replied: “Stop, you don't talk like that.
I went to his captain to complain about his racist words.
He replied that it was to get me out of the game and that I shouldn't answer him.
It is true that his player was doing this to piss me off.
But his captain was no more shocked than that.
I then went to see the referee to tell him that I would leave the field if it happened again.
He simply replied that he hadn't heard anything.
After that ?
I tried to calm down at the break.
Then I had a good start to the second half.
And that must have irritated the defender who started insulting me again: “Dirty black, dirty black shit, the blacks run otherwise they won't stay alive here.
“I was very sick at heart and I went to tell my coach that I wanted to go out and that it was too hard.
My teammates, without condemning this racism, just came between the defender and me when we were talking.
I do not understand.
Normally, everyone should have left the field.
But we are in Spain.
What does that mean ?
The more I think about it, the more I believe that today racist insults on a field in France or in England, that would no longer pass.
But in Spain or Italy, people are not ashamed of being racist.
They feel majority.
Moreover, when I was replaced, I heard lots of cries of monkeys from part of the public.
Did the opposing defender or club apologize afterwards?
Him, surely not.
My brother tagged him on a social network and he replied: “I don't care, it's not a subject that matters to me, thank you for the followers you give me by talking about me.
“I had no support except a phone call from the president of the Spanish federation who told me that he wanted to discuss this problem with me.
Anyway, thank you for this interview.
People need to know.
