Some track and field
athletes have threatened to boycott the Nigeria Athletics Federation (AFN) organised Golden League scheduled for Akure.
The athletes told newsmen in Lagos that the prize money for the two previous competitions in Abuja and Ilorin had not been paid.
The AFN’s league is organised every two weeks in different states to harness talents for national assignments.
The winner of the first position is to earn N40,000 and the second N30, 000, while the third and fourth positions are to get N20, 000 and N15,000 respectively.
The fifth placed athlete is to earn N10,000 and the sixth to get N5,000, while the first place winners in relay are to get N30,000, second N25, 000 and third N20,000.
Temidayo Oshunbanjo  runs 100m hurdles, Eze Anayo who does 800m and Abike Egbeniyi for 1,500m women.
The athletes, who claimed to be speaking for their colleagues, said they were tired of unfulfilled promises by the organisers over their outstanding prize monies.
Oshunbanjo, a gold medalist from the Abuja event in April said:  “As a professional, I am supposed to live from my career and not promise.
“From the kick-off of the league in Abuja, no prize money has been given to anybody, we all expected the money at the Ilorin event two Saturdays ago but to no avail.
“The Akure event will be a show down on individual basis devoid of conspiracy, the athletes are poised to down tool to drive home their demand,” Oshunbanjo said.
Anayo, also a gold medalist in the 800m of the league at Ilorin said: “We have had enough of their unfulfilled promises and we don’t live on pledges, they should pay us now.
“The consternation you see us express cut across the ranks of the participating athletes, it is quite regrettable that such a thing is happening now,” Anayo said.
Egbeniyi, a bronze medalist of the competition said that AFN should make the welfare of  athletes their topmost priority.
“With the feelings around the athletes only all-comers will be at the Akure event.
“The professional athletes are tired of misleading promises from the organisers and will not be part of the third leg of the league in Akure unless we are paid,” she said.
Meanwhile, Uruemu Adu, Assistant Secretary, Athletes Coaches Association, said the issue of athletes prize money had been resolved by the AFN and that they would be paid at Akure.
Adu told newsmen that there was an issue about who should be handed over the cheque.
“The issue has been resolved by AFN without the knowledge of the athletes, the initial problem had to do with who should AFN hand over the cheque to.
“Because the coaches are entitled to some percentage of the prize money,’’ Adu said.
He said the federation was using the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) guideline of 25 per cent to coaches and 75 per cent for athletes to resolve the issue.
According to him, the issue was resolved after the Ilorin event with the athlete’s representative Falilat Ogunkoya.