SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) board members say the executive has temporarily removed Barry Hendricks as acting president pending an investigation into the allegation that he blocked a potential rival from standing against him in the upcoming elections.

One source said Hendricks had not been suspended‚ but rather placed on “a mandatory leave of absence”.

Another said there was “nothing sinister” about the move‚ saying it was normal procedure to put distance between him and the probe‚ to be conducted by an arbitrator.

Ntambi Ravele‚ a veteran sports administrator‚ claimed her bid to stand for the Sascoc presidency was blocked by Hendricks and Tennis SA president Gavin Crookes.

Both denied the allegation‚ saying they had had a brief discussion in which Hendricks had asked if anyone from TSA was planning to stand‚ and Crookes had told him Ravele and vice president Riad Davids were possible contenders.

Hendricks then replied that neither had a chance‚ and Crookes relayed Hendricks’ sentiment to the TSA board‚ which decided that Davids should run for an ordinary board member. They declined to endorse Ravele’s nomination.

Sascoc appointed a lawyer to investigate Ravele’s claim‚ and the board’s decision follows the result of the probe by Advocate Baloyi.

One board member said Baloyi’s report found there was “a breach of conduct and code of ethics” and the matter would go to arbitration.

The board member added that Hendricks would still be eligible to stand for the Sascoc elections.

The ballot was initially set for March 28‚ but was postponed indefinitely because of the coronavirus lockdown.

Some of the board members who took the decision to place Hendricks on leave are also potential rivals of his in the vote.

An official statement from Sascoc has yet to be made.​