Cape Town – Springbok fly-half, Elton Jantjies has reportedly admitted to his wife, Iva Ristic, that he had an affair with Springbok dietician, Zeenat Simjee.
In an exclusive interview with News24, Jantjies admitted that the affair had been going on for several months.
He reportedly confessed his actions in an interview before boarding his flight to Cyprus, where his wife and kids have travelled to.
Elton and Simjee were sent home from the Springbok camp while the team prepared to take on Argentina in a Rugby Championship clash.
Both Elton and Zeenat initially denied that they had an affair.
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“Simjee was never with me at either of the two guest houses that I stayed at. She is a good friend and nothing more,” Elton said at the time.
“That her good name is now being dragged through the mud is a shame,” he added.
Meanwhile, Zeenat also released a statement denying the allegations.
“I am the subject of some extremely negative media reports over the last week, tarnishing me personally and degrading my dignity,” she said.
“Let me unequivocally state that I am shocked at the level of sensational journalism from the newspaper that first published the article. I am devastated by the fact that a journalist and his newspaper could publish such damaging allegations on false and baseless hearsay. It is disappointing,” she added.
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According to News24, it was not Elton who wrote the initial press release addressing the allegations.
“I deeply regret allowing them to tell a story that I should’ve clearly handled myself. The statement put out into the media was not written by me; I understand that at the time, a statement needed to be issued on the articles being published about me,” he was reported as saying.
The fly-half also denied being checked into rehab.
“I also noted that I was portrayed to be a drug addict with mental health issues. I can proudly say I have no mental health issues, and I was never in a rehab centre for drug abuse,” Jantjies said.
Both Elton and Iva said their main priority at this stage was their kids. Iva admitted that there was love between them, but she was unsure where the two of them would go “from here”.
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Picture: Instagram/ @ivarisstic
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Compiled by Junaid Benjamin
