ANKARA, Sept 10 (AFP) - Turkey`s world of weightlifting was in shock Friday with the media splashing accusations of sexual harassment by three women athletes against one of their coaches.
Sibel Simsek, Aylin Dasdelen and Sule Sahbaz, all members of the Turkish women`s team at the Athens Olympics, said they had filed official complaints against coach Mehmet Ustundag for repeated physical sexual molestation going back several years.
Dasdelen told a television news program that Ustundag also made it a habit of "beating" his charges, going so far as to blame the trainer for the 1999 suicide of teammate Esma Can.
The country`s best-known woman weightlifter, Nurcan Taylan, the world record-breaking 48-kilo gold medallist at Athens, sprang to Ustundag`s defense, accusing her three teammates of being "lesbians."
Weightlifting federation president Kenan Nuhut told the Istanbul daily Star that "the accusations are very serious" and promised an official investigation -- adding, however, that a previous probe on similar charges four years ago had been inconclusive.
Ustundag denied everything, saying he was the victim of "a plot".
Weightlifting is extremely popular in Turkey and brought it its only three gold medals at Athens, but has been regularly shaken by scandal, particularly with allegations of drug abuse.
One of Ustundag`s accusers, Sahbaz, who placed second in the snatch at the 2003 Vancouver World Championships, was kicked out of the Athens Games after testing positive before the 75-kilo contest.