Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games) gold medalist Junna Tsukii couldn’t savor her victory on the day she won a gold medal for the Philippines because of alleged bullying by their coach.
On Facebook, Tsukii shared how she was treated shortly after she won a medal for the country. Tsukii has accused her Turkish coach, Okay Arpa of not recognizing her victory.
“In my heart, I’m Filipino,” Arpa told the Inquirer, although he refused to talk more about Tsukii accusations.
Tsukii revealed that the rift between her and her coach was started when she competed in Madrid, Spain.
“This all began before my trip to Madrid. He didn’t allow me to go to Madrid. He said, the Federation, the Philippine Sports Commission said so,” she added.
Tsukii however clarified that the PSC gave her permission to compete.
The athlete said she is now on her last stop before bidding goodbye to her Olympic dream.
“Before I left for Madrid, he started bullying me. After I came back here, going to the SEA Games, he never talked to me, never looked at my face,” she added.
“I spend my money on my competitions. I don’t buy a car, I don’t buy a house, buy candies or something. No. I spend it all to be strong. But he still says I’m selfish,” Tsukii explained.
Tsukii said she decided to expose what has been happening to her so that other athletes can also speak up.
“I think it’s very important. We’re also people. We have minds, we have hearts,” she said.
