Sex scandal rocks camp as boxer accuses coach of victimisation

Nigeria’s All Africa Games gold medallist, Olufemi Oyeleye, has cried foul over the treatment meted out to him at the Team Nigeria Boxing camp in Lagos, where he was dropped by the chief coach, Tony Konyegwachi, because the coach wanted to snatch his girlfriend, also a female boxing All African Games gold medallist, Kehinde Obareh, and he refused.
The team’s camp at the Brai Ayanote Boxing Village, National Stadium, Lagos, was in turmoil on Tuesday as the decamped boxer stormed the camp with his father trainer and his mother, who raised so much dust, accusing the coaching crew of witch hunting their son who is the best in the 69kg division.
The team has been training in Lagos ahead of the African qualifiers for the Rio 2016 Olympics where he has picked 10 boxers who will represent Nigeria.
In the words of the team’s chief coach, Oyeleye was dropped from the team due to poor form and unethical conduct which runs against the rules of boxing.
The boxer disclosed that he was witch-hunted by Konyegwachi who was angry that he is dating one of the female boxers, Kehinde Obareh.
He also claimed the coach has been wooing the female boxer for reconciliation after he ended an affair with her five years ago.
The boxer alleged: “Coach Konyegwachi dropped me because he wants me to end my relationship with Kehinde Obareh who was his girlfriend five years ago. He told me at the training camp that, in a much as I refuse to stop dating Kehinde, we have become sworn enemies. He complained bitterly of our closeness at the All Africa Games camp, yet the two of us won gold for the country in our various classes.
“So, the reason for my decampment was a cover up to what the coach claimed. I was accused by the coach of biting my opponent’s neck during a trials bout against Christian Abua. It was stage managed that, Abua should pretend that I had bitten him, which I never did. The truth is that I didn’t bite Abua, the chief coach just wanted me out of the team at all costs, so as to have time to woo Kehinde back. I asked the other judges around the ring to check for mark of any bite on Abua’s neck and there was nothing to show. The coach wanted to get rid of me”.
Konyegwachi denied all allegations made by Oyeleye.
He claimed that the boxer only made frivolous claims which do not hold water, insisting that there was nothing like sexual harassment in his camp.
To him, the allegation that he was out to get involved in a relationship with Obareh is false and a figment of Oyeleye’s imagination.
“We are in camp here doing serious business of preparing for the Olympic qualifiers in Cameroon and this guy only wants to distract us. He was beaten by Abua Christian in two previous bouts out of three. Abua beat Oyeleye in the first fight in a unanimous decision, while the second fight was stopped in the second round by the referee saving him from further punishment. And in the third fight, Abua was having the upper hand when Oyeleye, who was losing, resorted to biting his opponent in the neck. And in boxing, biting is not allowed, it is automatic disqualification that goes with a sanction, that is why we have decided to drop Oyeleye from this trip and we have picked boxers for the qualifiers.”