A lawyer for French athlete Eunice Barber demanded an inquiry yesterday after a TV station aired amateur video footage of what appeared to be police abuse following her arrest for a driving offence.

Emmanuel Daoud, a lawyer for the Sierra Leone-born athlete, said he was shocked by the images, broadcast by French channel L'Equipe TV on Tuesday.

Barber, a French citizen who took heptathlon gold in the 1999 world championships, was arrested on March 18 while driving near the Stade de France sports stadium in Paris.

Earlier this week, Daoud said Barber intended to sue several police officers for brutality after the incident and had lodged a complaint with the police internal affairs department.

Images showed Barber being pinned to the bonnet of her car by four police officers before being twice forced to the ground. She was then put into a police van.

"I'm terribly shocked," Daoud told L'Equipe. "She is like a puppet pushed on to the ground." He said the footage should form part of an investigation into the officers' behaviour.

Earlier this week, Barber said: "I took a left turn while the officer indicated for me to turn right. But I didn't understand what he wanted from me.

"He then banged on my car. I scrolled down the window and he slapped my face. I got out of the car and more officers showed up."

She said two officers had stepped on her hands and head, and made racist remarks.