World Conker Championship cheating claims blamed on ‘sore loser’

A veteran conkers competitor dubbed King Conker has rejected claims he cheated his way to his first men’s title after 40 years of trying.

David Jakins won the men’s competition at the World Conker Championships during the tournament in Northamptonshire on Sunday.

But the 82-year-old’s victory was plunged into controversy and he was surprised to find himself at the centre of national headlines when the Telegraph reported claims he cheated by swapping his real conker for a metal one.

Mr Jakins told the BBC he denied the allegations. Event chairman Jim Packer also rejected the claims, saying: “Somebody’s a sore loser, I think.”

He added: “Yes, he had a steel conker with him, which we’re aware of… it’s very obvious it’s not a real one.”

Mr Jakins said he had been playing in conker competitions for 40 years and carried a metal conker to amuse children.

“You get them to hit it with their conker and then their conker breaks and they can’t believe it,” he said.

“It’s impossible to cheat at conkers – it’s a load of nonsense.”

On Monday, tournament organisers said in a statement: “David Jakins, previous finalist and long-standing committee member, very much deserves his King Conker title.”

Competitors who spoke to the Telegraph thought it suspicious Mr Jakins had “obliterated opponents’ nuts in one hit”.

However, Mr Packer defended Mr Jakins, describing him as “a heavy hitter” and explaining it was not unusual for conkers to be destroyed.

“We’ve had numerous players more than capable of smashing on the first hit,” he added.

Kelci Banschbach, originally from Indianapolis, Indiana, was overall winner of the event.

She defeated Mr Jakins in the final match to win the women’s title and title “Queen Conker”.