Cheating scandal hits World Conker Championship as winner discovered with steel device

The World Conker Championships has been hit by a cheating scandal after the winner was found with a dummy chestnut made of steel in his pocket.

A top level probe was underway into David Jakins’s triumph in the annual event to find the planet’s best nut-basher. David stunned 2,000 watching fans when he lifted the men’s title at his 46th attempt – aged 82.

He won his quarter and semi-final by obliterating his opponents’ nuts with just one hit – which is almost unheard of at the world finals of the traditional schoolyard game.

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A search afterwards revealed the retired engineer had a steel conker shaped and painted to look real and threaded on an identical lace in his pocket. Jakins, who was also the tournament’s top judge known as ‘King Conker’ insisted he had not used the super-strength nut in competition and only carried it around so he could crack jokes.

He had himself drilled and inserted strings into the chestnuts of many of the 256 players taking part in the contest in Southwick, Northants, on Sunday. Runner-up Alistair Johnson-Ferguson, 23, from central London, who was beaten by Jakins in the final, said: “My conker disintegrated in one hit.

“That just doesn’t happen. Now it turns out King Conker had a dummy steel conker so he could have swapped his real conker for that one.

“I’m suspicious of foul play and have expressed my surprise to organisers.”

Fan David Glew, 78, from Nocton, Lincs, added: “The whole thing is nuts.”

Jakins, from Northants, who had entered the tournament every year since 1977 without previous success, said: “I was found with the steel conker in my pocket but I only carry around with me for humour value.

“I did not use it during the event. Yes, I did help prepare the conkers before the event. But this isn’t cheating or a fix and I didn’t mark the strings.

“I just tried to hit hard and somehow I finally won.”

Tournament spokesman St John Burkett said complaints had been made and an investigation was underway.

“Allegations of foul play have been received that somehow King Conker swapped his real conker for the metal one found to be in his pocket,” he said.

“We’re looking into it.”

Meanwhile an American woman became the first Yank to win the World Conker Championships.

Kelci Banschbach, originally from Indianapolis, Indiana, only took up the very British pursuit a year ago. Her family were baffled but pleased that she won the coveted contest, held in Southwick, Northamptonshire.

The new queen of conkers, 34, said of the tough competition: “It’s very nerve-wracking, everyone is watching you. It’s quite a large crowd if I’m honest.

“I was hearing heckling from some people, so I wanted to prove them wrong. My parents were a little confused when I had to explain what I was doing, but they’re so proud none-the-less.”