Football, rugby and handball have been hit by scandals in recent months that have threatened to derail preparations for next year’s Olympics in Paris.

The French National Olympic and Sports Committee was also rocked by a governance crisis following a bitter row between its President Brigitte Henriques and sacked secretary general Didier Séminet, leading Oudéa-Castéra to call for calm.

In a column for French newspaper Le Monde, Oudéa-Castéra revealed that a national committee was due to be established and tasked with the responsibility of ensuring governance in sports is "more ethical, more democratic and more protective of practitioners".

"I have taken the decision to set up a national committee to strengthen ethics in sport, which will be set up soon and will be made up of indisputably qualified personalities, coming from all walks of life, whose experience and complementary viewpoints will allow us to have the necessary perspective and the ambition for reform that we need," said Oudéa-Castéra.

"In the fight against sexual and gender-based violence, the action plans are being strengthened under the greatest vigilance of my Ministry.

"With historic deadlines approaching for our country, it is our duty to promote irreproachable governance in terms of ethics and social responsibility, while French sport is preparing to show the world its best face.

"That of our athletes and their future medals, that of enthusiasts and the recognition of years of work, that of a country that is entirely open to welcoming lovers of Olympism and Paralympism from around the world entire.

"That of a resolutely sporting nation for which the values of sport, respect, courage, are not a distant myth but a daily compass."

Noël Le Graët resigned as head of the French Football Federation on Tuesday (February 28) following an investigation into accusations of sexual harassment and sexism as well as a scathing report commissioned by Oudéa-Castéra.

The lawyers of Le Graët now intend to file a libel case against Oudéa-Castéra for a "manipulation of information".

The French Ministries of Sports and the Economy is also set to conduct a joint inspection of the French Rugby Federation’s budgetary and financial management after Bernard Laporte was forced to step down as President after being convicted of corruption charges in January.

That month also saw Bruno Martini quit as the lead of France’s Ligue Nationale de Handball after being handed a one-year suspended prison sentence for corruption of a minor and recording of child pornography images.

Oudéa-Castéra admitted that French sport had been "overshadowed in recent months by a succession of crises" as she stressed the need for reforms.

"Whether they are the result of anachronistic managerial practices, breaches of ethics, shortcomings in the fight against all forms of violence or a lack of democratic lifelines, they all point to the need to support concrete and definitive changes to strengthen the institutions of French sport," said the French Sports Minister.

"These crises must not make us forget that many federations are doing well.

"This movement to modernise the governance of sport must fully learn the lessons of recent mistakes, which can no longer occur within organizations delegated to a public service which are responsible for part of the future and the -being of our youth.

"It is up to us to ensure together, state, local authorities, federations, sports structures and associations, national and territorial officials, professional sport and amateur sport, that everyone finds a secure, ethical framework, adapted to their expectations and their needs to practice."