Drugged and raped, Gisèle Pélicot has become France's symbol of fight against sexual violence

PARIS (AP) — Gisèle Pélicot, the woman who was allegedly drugged by her now ex-husband over the course of a decade so that she could be raped by dozens of men while unconscious, is becoming a symbol of France's fight against sexual violence.

Some 700 people gathered at Place de la Republique in Paris in support for the 71-year-old and all rape victims in France. Some carried banners that hailed Pélicot for speaking out about her horrific ordeal and assured other victims of sexual violence that they are not alone. “Victims, we believe you. Rapists, we see you,” one banner said.

Since the beginning of the extraordinary trial on Sept. 2, during which Pélicot will face 51 of her alleged rapists, she has been praised for her courage and composure.

First, there was her decision to keep the trial public — after the court had initially suggested that it be held behind closed doors. She allowed journalists to publish her full name, and the court to exhibit explicit videos recorded by her husband showing men engaging in sexual intercourses with her naked, inert body.

She has said her decisions were in solidarity with other women who go unrecognized as victims of sexual crimes.

“It’s very important to be here because we need to talk about the rape culture,” said Anna Toumazoff, an activist and one of the organizers of the Paris protest. “After seven years of MeToo, we know that there is not a special type of victim. We are also collectively realizing that there is no special type of a rapist.”

Despite several waves of the #Metoo reckoning in France, which featured several high profile women speaking publicly about the trauma they’ve endured after years of sexual abuse, protesters said that much of the violence remains unreported and often goes unpunished.

On Sept. 5, Pélicot spoke about her ordeal in public for the first time since police officers, four years ago, called her in to tell her the unthinkable. With a calm and clear voice, she detailed the horror of discovering that her former spouse had been sedating her and invited at least 72 strangers into their house in Provence to have sex with her.

“For me, everything collapses,” she testified. “These are scenes of barbarity, of rape.”

National broadcaster TF1 that day described a “dignified, strong," woman, who was "holding her head high.”

In an open letter translated into English and published in French newspaper Le Monde, journalist and author Hélène Devynck thanked Pélicot for her bravery, echoing the feelings of many other French people.

“You entered our lives like you entered the Avignon court, through the front door,” wrote Devynck, a figure of the French #MeToo movement. “It’s not just you, Gisèle, that they’ve treated like a thing. They were telling us, all of us women, how insignificant we are. Your strength restores ours. Thank you for this immense gift."

Next week, Gisèle Pélicot will have to brave another mountain: facing the man whom she shared her life for over 50 years, and father of their three children. Her lawyer has said she is planning on attending his testimony.

Her ex-husband, Dominique Pélicot, has previously confessed to the crimes to investigators. But his court hearing will be crucial for the panel of judges to decide on the fate of the 50 other men accused of rape.

A majority of the defendants are contesting the accusation of “rape”. Some have claimed they believed a husband’s consent for sexual intercourse was sufficient, others said they were tricked by Dominique Pélicot to believe his wife was consenting.

One lawyer representing six defendants has shocked the nation arguing that “there is rape and rape, and without intention, there is no rape.”

Magali Lafourcade, a magistrate and secretary general of the National Consultative Commission on Human Rights, also applauded Gisèle Pélicot. She stressed that in France, studies suggest that nine out of 10 women who are victims of rape do not press charges. And when they do, about 80% of the cases are dropped.

For health reasons, Dominique Pélicot has been exempted from attending the trial since Wednesday. He is expected to testify on Monday or Tuesday, his lawyer, Béatrice Zavarro, has said. Asked whether her client was trying to get out of testifying, Zavarro said Friday that he “had been waiting for his trial, he wanted to talk and be confronted to his wife and children.”

Dominique Pélicot, now 71, and the 50 other defendants face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

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Associated Press writer Barbara Surk in Nice, France, contributed to this report.

People take part in a gathering in support of 71-year-old Gisele Pelicot who was allegedly drugged by her ex-husband and raped by dozens of men while unconscious, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024 in Paris. Placard reads, "support for Gisle Pelicot." (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

People take part in a gathering at Place de la Rebublique in support of 71-year-old Gisele Pelicot who was allegedly drugged by her ex-husband and raped by dozens of men while unconscious, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024 in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

People take part in a gathering in support of 71-year-old Gisele Pelicot who was allegedly drugged by her ex-husband and raped by dozens of men while unconscious, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024 in Paris. Placards left read, "3 billion euros to combat violence against women." (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Gisele Pelicot, centre left, leaves the Avignon court house with her sons, David, left, Florian, center background and her lawyer Stephane Babonneau, right, in Avignon, southern France, Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. A woman allegedly drugged by her ex-husband so that she could be raped by other men while she laid unconscious, is expected to testify before a panel of French judges. (AP Photo/Lewis Joly)

Gisele Pelicot speaks to media as she leaves the Avignon court house, southern France, Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. A woman allegedly drugged by her ex-husband so that she could be raped by other men while she laid unconscious, is expected to testify before a panel of French judges. (AP Photo/Lewis Joly)

SHANGHAI (AP) — Stefanos Tsitsipas' rivalry with Daniil Medvedev will add another chapter after the Greek player beat Alexandre Muller 6-3, 7-5 at the Shanghai Masters on Tuesday.

The 12th-ranked Tsitsipas and the Russian former U.S. Open champion will meet for a 14th time, and first in nearly a year. The fifth-ranked Medvedev has a commanding 9-4 lead in the head-to-head series, which has spilled over into a war of words off the court in the past.

“I consider him someone that I respect on the tour, much more than I did before," Tsitsipas said. "We’ve had some heated things on the court in the past, but I think those things have resolved themselves over time, and we also had the time to speak about those things and have a common understanding of why these things happen.

“What is missing is trying to get a good win under my belt, and that will redeem my efforts for so far of trying to get better. My whole goal is to get out there, play the best tennis that I can.”

Tsitsipas had to wait out a two-day rain delay to play his third-round match against Muller, but looked in complete control until losing his serve at 5-3 in the second set. Unperturbed, the Greek broke back to love to clinch the match and renew his six-year rivalry with Medvedev.

No. 16-ranked Ben Shelton put away Roberto Carballes Baena 6-3, 6-4, firing eight aces and 24 winners to line up top seed Jannik Sinner in the fourth round.

Seventh-ranked Taylor Fritz also advanced with ease, beating Japan's Yosuke Watanuki 6-3, 6-4, while Grigor Dimitrov, playing in his 100th Masters event, beat Alexei Popyrin 7-6 (5), 6-3.

Gael Monfils upset 15th-ranked Ugo Humbert 7-6 (7), 2-6, 6-1 in an all-French matchup. The 38-year-old Monfils, ranked 46th, is the second oldest player to reach the Shanghai fourth round in Shanghai, behind only Roger Federer (also 38) in 2019.

“It’s never easy to play Ugo, he’s really aggressive, playing fast off both wings and takes a lot of time from you,” said Monfils, who plays second-ranked Carlos Alcaraz next.

“Carlos is in a confident mood (having) just won a tournament ( China Open ), so that’s going to be a tough one for sure.”

Also, Tomas Machac, who made the semifinals in Tokyo, eased past Australian Alexander Vukic 6-4, 6-2 and next faces No. 13-ranked Tommy Paul in the third round.

Later Tuesday, four-time champion Novak Djokovic plays his third-round match against Flavio Cobolli, bidding to capture his 100th tour-level title. Third-ranked Alexander Zverev faces Tallon Griekspoor of the Netherlands in a night match.

Katerina Siniakova had a comfortable 6-3, 6-1 victory over Alexandra Eala of the Philippines to set up a second-round match against defending champion Aryna Sabalenka.

Second-ranked Sabalenka, who won the title the last time it was played in 2019, needs only to make the quarterfinals at Wuhan to regain top spot in the rankings from Iga Swiatek, who withdrew from the women’s Asian swing citing fatigue and personal reasons. Swiatek recently split with coach Tomasz Wiktorowski.

Magda Linette of Poland routed No. 23-ranked Liudmila Samsonova 6-2, 6-2, and Ekaterina Alexandrova beat former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin of the U.S. 6-1, 4-6, 6-4.

Other winners included Britain’s Katie Boulter, American Amanda Anisimova, Bulgaria's Viktoriya Tomova and Romania's Jaqueline Cristian, who has Paris Olympics gold medalist Zheng Qinwen next,

After snapping a 24-match losing streak at the China Open last week, Zhang Shuai’s change of fortune turned in Wuhan as she lost to Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan 6-4, 6-4 in the first round.

The top eight seeds, including Sabalenka and China Open champion Coco Gauff, received a first-round bye.

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Ugo Humbert of France plays a backhand return against his compatriot Gael Monfils during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Gael Monfils of France plays a forehand return against his compatriot Ugo Humbert during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Gael Monfils of France serves against his compatriot Ugo Humbert during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Taylor Fritz of the United States plays a backhand return against Yosuke Watanuki of Japan during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece plays a backhand return against Alexandre Muller of France during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece plays a backhand return against Alexandre Muller of France during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece reacts during the men's singles third round match against Alexandre Muller of France, in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)