The ruling by the court of Sarreguemines in Moselle was made after charges were upheld over the sexual harassment of a minor under the age of 15, L’Equipe and AFP report.

Peifer was initially prosecuted for a "sexual proposal made to a minor under 15 by electronic means".

But during the trial last in October, the prosecution successfully requested the reclassification of the charge as one of "sexual harassment" - a shift described by Peifer's lawyer, Maître Martial Gagneux, as "a serious distortion of the law."

Gagneux said Peifer would appeal the decision, adding: "The basic prevention was disqualified by the court, it is already that it did not hold water.

"And on the facts of harassment, I do not see where there was harassment, except to consider that the fact of sending messages to someone, and not sending any more when you are asked, is constitutive of harassment.

"For me, this is a serious distortion of the law."

During the trial in October, Gagneux denied the existence of a criminal offence while acknowledging that his client had exchanged messages with the victim, a civil party, between 2016 and 2018.

Peifer and his doubles partner Stéphane Houdet successfully defended their Paralympic title at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics last summer, and have completed a career Super Slam, having also won all four major titles as well as the Wheelchair Tennis Masters event.