Greek main opposition party SYRIZA has brought allegations made by race walker Antigoni Ntrismpioti to Parliament, questioning athletics governing body SEGAS over why her personal coach was absent from the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham.
Following an initiative led by lawmaker Elena Akrita, SYRIZA MPs submitted a formal parliamentary question to Minister of Education Sofia Zacharaki, demanding explanations for what Ntrismpioti described as unequal treatment.
Ntrismpioti is one of Greece's most prominent track athletes, having won European race walking titles. SEGAS, the Hellenic Amateur Athletics Association, serves as the national governing body for track and field sports in Greece, while national sports governance falls under the Ministry of Education.
Coaching delegation criteria
The parliamentary question focuses on why Ntrismpioti was required to compete at the European Athletics Championships without her personal coach, Brent Vallance, while other athletes in the Greek delegation were accompanied by their individual trainers.
Akrita and her fellow lawmakers requested clarification on the specific criteria used to assemble the national team coaching delegation. They asked whether those criteria were applied uniformly to every athlete representing Greece.
According to the parliamentary question, the federation's explanation that general coaching support was provided on site is insufficient to account for the absence of Vallance, who is directly responsible for Ntrismpioti's daily training regime.
Allegations of unequal treatment
The opposition MPs urged the ministry to investigate whether Ntrismpioti was subjected to unequal or discriminatory treatment by SEGAS. They called on the federation to provide documented justification regarding its decisions and coach selection criteria.
The lawmakers concluded by asking why a leading Greek athlete was left without her personal trainer at a major international championship when other team members were granted that option.
