Before the meeting started, Henriques had announced that she had no plans to step down and was planning to ask for a vote of confidence following a turbulent two-year period since she was elected as CNOSF's first female President which last week saw her predecessor Denis Masseglia call on her to resign.  

Masseglia claimed Henriques was "no longer up to the challenge" as he urged her to step down and said he intended to issue a complaint against her with the National Financial Prosecutor's Office for misuse of corporate assets.

In the end, Henriques astonished delegates by revealing during her introductory remarks that she was stepping down without putting the matter to the General Assembly.

She told delegates that her decision to resign will become effective on June 29, the second anniversary of her election to replace Masseglia.

"Astrid Guyart, secretary general of the CNOSF, will ensure the Presidency of the CNOSF during this transition period and will have to organise a Board of Directors which will elect a President from among its members within the next three months, in accordance with the statutory provisions of the institution," the governing body said in a statement.

"Brigitte Henriques calls on all members of the sports movement to remain mobilised on the essential and primordial objective: the full success of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris in 2024."

Early candidates to succeed Henriques include David Lappartient, President of the International Cycling Union and a member of the International Olympic Committee.

"If it's to help the Olympic family, I'm ready to study the situation," he said. 

A CNOSF account of the meeting claimed that "Brigitte Henriques was warmly applauded by the General Assembly for her contribution, her dedication and the modernisation work she has instilled within the institution since the beginning of her mandate".

Henriques had been under fire following a public row since firing Didier Séminet last October after she alleged his conduct was "inappropriate in the way a secretary general can behave with a President" - claims that he denied. 

The former vice-president of the French Football Federation (FFF) later filed a complaint for "psychological violence" against Séminet and took time off from her role to recover.

But upon her return to work, Henriques claimed the atmosphere at the CNOSF had not improved and she became involved in a public feud with Masseglia, who had appointed Séminet during his period as President between 2009 and 2021. 

Masseglia Ied the CNOSF from 2009 until 2021 when he stepped down after reaching the age limit and was replaced by Henriques who won a four-way contest in the Presidential election.

Among Masseglia's main grievances was that Henriques had held a press conference in early April where her lawyer, Arash Derambarsh, raised the prospect of filing a complaint against him.

He criticised Henriques during a CNOSF Board of Directors meeting last week and called her threat to take legal action against him "totally unacceptable".

Henriques' resignation will not affect the organising of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, which is handled by the Paris Olympics Organising Committee headed by France's three-time canoeing gold medallist Tony Estanguet.

But it could affect the preparation of the French team for the Olympics, which the CNOSF is playing a leading role in. 

Following today's announcement, Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra called on French sport to come together just 14 months before Paris 2024 is due to open.

"There have been no winners today," Oudea-Castera told news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP). 

She added, however, there could be "a victory, that of ethics and democracy".

The resignation of Henriques is just the latest high-profile departure of a leader in French sport.

FFF's long serving President Noel Le Graet was forced to resign in February following accusations of sexual and psychological harassment.

Former Sports Minister and French rugby coach Bernard Laporte also quit his role as President of the French Rugby Federation in January after being convicted of corruption, just a few months before France is due to host the Rugby World Cup.

The 40-year-old Guyart, charged with overseeing the transition of Henriques and the election of a new President, won an Olympic silver medal as part of the French foil team at the re-arranged 2020 Games in Tokyo. 

Tributes to Henriques included one from Estanguet.

"I want to sincerely thank and salute Brigitte Henriques for her commitment to French sport," he said.

"For the past two years, she has been constantly alongside Paris 2024 to promote the role of the sports movement within all of our programmes: Terre de Jeux, the French team, the torch relay or again the volunteers."

But, like Oudéa-Castéra, he urged French sport to unite.

"Today, one year from the Games, I appeal to collective responsibility," he said. 

"Finding a climate of calm and stability is urgently needed so that the sports movement is at the heart of the success of the Games. 

"The Games in our country are only once every 100 years: the sports movement must be there."

It was a message echoed by the IOC in Lausanne.

It said, it "takes note of this decision and warmly thanks Mrs. Henriques for her work at the head of the CNOSF and her contribution to the Olympic Movement. 

"The IOC appeals to everyone's responsibility so that the internal conflicts that have affected the CNOSF in recent months cease and that the entire French Olympic and sports Movement is fully focused on the success of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games and the athletes."