FILE – The Philippines’ Ernest John Obiena reacts in the course of the Pole Vault Males competitors of the ISTAF INDOOR (Internationales Stadionfest) worldwide athletics assembly on February 5, 2021 in Berlin. (Photograph by Tobias SCHWARZ / POOL / AFP)
MANILA, Philippines—EJ Obiena hit again on the Philippine Athletics Monitor and Discipline Affiliation (Patafa) and filed a countermeasure to the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC), the Worldwide Olympic Committee (IOC), and World Athletics.
Patafa claimed Obiena, who completed eleventh within the pole vault competitors on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, of falsifying his liquidation reviews and ordered the Olympian to return €85,000 (over P4.8 million) to the nationwide sporting affiliation.
Obiena was additionally accused of failing to pay his coach Vitaly Petrov.
“I’ve filed formal complaints with the POC, IOC, and the World Athletics, as we at the moment are speaking normal defamation of character,” stated Obiena in a press convention Sunday. “I’ve retained authorized counsel and I do intend to pursue this vigorously.”
“This whole incident has broken my popularity. I welcome any courtroom of regulation to shed gentle below the ability of proof and examine this matter.”
In a letter despatched to Obiena, the Patafa “primarily based on the written statements of Mr. Sergey Bubka and Mr. Vitaly Petrov, together with the paperwork you might have submitted to the Patafa, it seems that you falsified the liquidations submitted to the Patafa and didn’t pay the teaching charges of Mr. Vitaly Petrov within the complete quantity of Eighty-5 Thousand Euros (€85,000).”
Petrov, who joined Obiena within the press convention, disputed Patafa’s accusations and stated that Obiena paid him the €5,000 month-to-month stipend.
The pole vaulting coach has additionally knowledgeable Patafa President Philip Ella Juico by a letter that he acquired his pay from Obiena.
“With this letter I want to thanks as soon as once more on your assist and to verify that EJ Obiena compensated me my wage which was agreed with him earlier than in full starting 2018 till now,” wrote Petrov. “I’ve no complaints in opposition to him. Ernest is an impressive athlete of your nation and my objective continues to be to make him an elite world-known athlete.”
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