The National Sports Commission (NSC) has described as “unfair,” the protest by some home-based athletes decamped from the 2026 Commonwealth Games camp in Asaba, Delta State, at the weekend.

The athletes staged a protest over alleged unpaid allowances after six weeks in camp. A video of the protest went viral, showing athletes lamenting that they were decamped without receiving their promised payments, alleging they were given only N75,000 to cover their transport home after weeks of training.

However, NSC Director General, Bukola Olopade, told The Guardian that the decamped athletes were paid about N170,000 each and not N75,000 as they claimed.

“It is unfair for the athletes to paint both the NSC and AFN in bad light,” Olopade said. “The decamped athletes got about N170,000 each, and they were well treated all through the duration of their camp in Asaba.

“These complaints by the athletes that they were poorly treated, inadequately fed and housed in poor living conditions are not true because we monitored them from time to time. These are athletes that the NSC is banking on for medals at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, so why would we treat them badly? I want the athletes to realise that the fact they couldn’t make the cut for the Commonwealth Games is not the end of their career. It means they have to work harder on their speed and techniques because they may be called upon one day in the build up to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. My advice to the athletes is to look at the bigger picture of their athletics career and not this Commonwealth Games camp only,” Olopade said.

Meanwhile, AFN President, Tonobok Okowa, at the weekend, confirmed that there was delay in the payment of athletes’ allowances, but claimed there was no financial misconduct, no welfare neglect, and no breach of protocol during the exercise.

Okowa maintained that all money were properly approved and disbursed by the NSC, with full accountability intact.

“There was no diversion or misuse of funds,” he said, adding that records remain open for scrutiny.

Okowa also debunked claims of poor living conditions, revealing that athletes were housed in a well-rated hotel and trained in facilities that were jointly inspected and approved by officials before camp began.

Okowa further said that he personally stepped in to provide additional welfare support, ensuring athletes experienced no shortfall during the camp.

The AFN blamed hitch in payment due to third-party processing issue, not negligence, saying: “All athletes and coaches have now been fully paid, with athletes prioritised in line with “Athlete-First Policy.”