TOKYO :Nafissatou Thiam has accused the Belgian athletics federation of disrupting her World Championships preparations, but it accused the three-time Olympic champion of lying in a nasty spat days before she begins her quest for a third heptathlon world title.

In an extraordinary exchange on Tuesday, a tearful Thiam said she had been barred from the team’s preparatory camp in Japan due to her refusal to sign the federation's code of conduct, but the federation president said she had written proof the 31-year-old was being untruthful.

"Five days before departure, I received an email from the federation stating that because I hadn't signed the code of conduct, my pre-camp hadn't been validated and therefore no reservation had been made for me," Thiam told a press conference.

“I had to fi

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