According to French media, Lamour filed an appeal on Thursday (October 5) protesting what she considered "unequal treatment" during the campaign.

The French Fencing Federation President received 385 votes on May 11 in comparison with 556 for incumbent Masseglia.

David Douillet, the double Olympic judo champion and former Sports Minister, finished a distant third with 54 votes.

Lamour told Agence France-Presse that she had filed a request for an interim injunction with the Tribunal de grande instance de Paris (TGI) - the high court - in which she is demanding the cancellation of the result in favour of fresh elections. 

"This appeal follows a campaign for the Presidency of the CNOSF and a conduct of the ballot tainted by manifest breaches of the principle of equality of candidates and marked by numerous irregularities under the statutory rules of the CNOSF as general principles of electoral law," she added in a statement. 

Lamour contested the fact that Masseglia, as the existing President, had more opportunities to speak publicly about his achievements and plans while also speculating that he used CNOSF resources to assist his campaign.

She had also criticised the "completely unacceptable conditions" in which the vote took place immediately after the result, but subsequently declared that she would not appeal.

Her decision to change her mind and do so appears to have been made some time ago, but Lamour claims to have delayed it until after Paris was confirmed as host of the 2024 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games last month in Lima.

She told AFP that this was a "responsible" move designed to "preserve all the chances" of the candidacy of Paris.

Masseglia ultimately formed a key part of Paris' bidding team in the Peruvian capital, even if the result there was a formality due to sole rival Los Angeles having shifted their focus to the subsequent edition in 2028.

He has not yet commented following Lamour announcing her plans to appeal.

insidethegames has also contacted the CNOSF for a reaction.