Fact check: French rugby player Jordan Michallet died by suicide, not COVID-19 vaccine

Bayliss Wagner, USA TODAY
·3 min read
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The claim: A French rugby player's death is connected to the COVID-19 vaccine

French rugby club Rouen-Normandie announced Jan. 18 that 29-year-old player Jordan Michallet had died.

"This terrible news has thrown the entire club into a profound grief," the club said in a statement on Facebook.

It wasn't long before the news became fodder for online speculation. Before the cause of his death was widely reported in English-language media, numerous social media users asserted the COVID-19 vaccine was responsible.

"Another athlete dying suddenly," one Facebook user captioned an image of a headline about Michallet's death stating the player had died on Jan. 23. "Murdered by the jabs."

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This user and others took the rugby player's death as evidence of widespread, vaccine-related deaths among athletes, a theory that outlets like Factcheck.org and the Associated Press have debunked.

Another #coincidence??" reads a Jan. 20 tweet with hundreds of retweets.

Michallet's death had nothing to do with the vaccine, according to reports in several French newspapers.

USA TODAY reached out to social media users who shared the post for comment.

Michallet's death unrelated to COVID-19 vaccine

Michallet did not die as a result of COVID-19 vaccination. Instead, he died by suicide, as Paris-Normandie, Le Figaro, Le Parisien and France Bleu reported.

According to police, the outlets reported, Michallet crashed his car into a highway divider in Rouen, France, around 1 p.m. on Jan. 18. Less than 20 minutes later, he jumped from a nearby building, police told Paris-Normandie. A witness notified police after seeing Michallet fall, Le Parisien reported.

In November, Michallet signed a three-year contract with his club. He had also recently married and was expecting a child, Actu.fr reported.

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Eric Leroy, president of the Rouen-Normandie club, told Paris-Normandie that Michallet is "a member of the family."

"He was always smiling, always in a good mood," Leroy said. "He was truly a good guy. When people die, we often exaggerate, but in this case, it's the truth. We are thinking of his wife Noélie and his family."

As USA TODAY has previously reported, the COVID-19 vaccines do not cause death.

Our rating: False

Based on our research, we rate the claim that Michallet's death was connected to the COVID-19 vaccine FALSE. As several French news outlets reported, Michallet died by suicide.

If you or someone you know may be struggling with self-harm or suicidal thoughts, you can call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) any time day or night, or chat online.

Crisis Text Line also provides free, 24/7, confidential support via text message to people in crisis when they dial 741741.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: Jordan Michallet death unrelated to COVID-19 vaccine