James DeGale, the Great Britain Olympic gold medallist, yesterday led a barrage of criticism aimed at amateur boxing chiefs after agreeing a £1.5m professional deal with Frank Warren.

James DeGale, the Great Britain Olympic gold medallist, yesterday led a barrage of criticism aimed at amateur boxing chiefs after agreeing a £1.5m professional deal with Frank Warren.

DeGale joined Sports Network alongside Olympic team-mates Frankie Gavin and Billy Joe Saunders and the trio all expressed dismay at the Amateur Boxing Association.

Paul King, the ABA chief executive, was the chief victim of DeGale's anger, with the 22-year-old railing against unpaid bonuses, a lack of kit and political in-fighting. And in a damning indictment of amateur boxing's governing body, he claimed the ABA's conduct is driving fighters into the professional ranks.

"They took the p*** out of me. They promised our bonuses and I'm still owed £20,000," said the Olympic middleweight champion, who has agreed a two-year contract with Warren. "Suddenly they tell us they've stopped the bonuses after we'd returned from the Olympics.

I missed out on £20,000.

"That showed their true colours. Their behaviour just made it easier to join the pros, it made up our minds. They never came up with a package.

If they say they did then they are lying. They never even called to give me advice.

"I received a letter saying they want to sit down with me in January. They want me to put my life on hold even longer. It was as if they didn't want us. They assumed I'd go because I'd won gold, so they forgot about us. They treated us like kids.

"Great Britain were the only team going to multi-nations and world championships without tracksuits. It was so unprofessional, all we had was kit to box in. Other countries looked at us and said oh my word'. We looked like idiots.

"Even Armenia had tracksuits and they're one of the smallest countries around."

DeGale added: "People admire Paul King but he's an a**hole. No-one in the ABA likes each other. None of the boxers like King. King and Terry Edwards GB head coach don't like each other, so how are they supposed to work together? I'm glad I'm out of that whole set-up."

The Amateur Boxing Association of England strongly refuted the claims made by Degale, which echoed those of bronze medallist Tony Jeffries when he became the first Beijing Olympian to turn professional on Saturday.

King responded by saying: "The medal bonuses were withdrawn in December 2007 and that was based on the premise that the ABA only now receives funding for the grass-roots elements of the sport. The medal bonuses were something the ABA made available out of the goodness of their heart prior to the Melbourne Commonwealth Games to try to stimulate the England team at that time."

King also denied DeGale's allegation that ABA chiefs had shown no interest in contacting him to discuss the possibility of remaining amateur. "I spoke to James personally about the potential sponsorship opportunities," he added. "I arranged to meet him in Liverpool during the European Championships and although he was also there, I did not see him over three days."

DeGale was supported by Gavin, who was forced to withdraw from Beijing after losing a punishing battle to make the lightweight limit. The 23-year-old was criticised at the time but insisted he was subjected to a gruelling weight-loss programme which reflects poorly on Edwards and the ABA.

"I was running on the spot and punching in a sauna in a sweat suit," he said. "I was doing that for 20 minutes. It was bad and it made me really weak."

Saunders, the youngest member of Britain's squad in Beijing, was suspended for alleged "lewd behaviour" after the Olympics. The 19-year-old said: "The ABA pushed us into turning pro. If they'd offered us a contract until 2012 if we perform, it may have been different. They made promises in the run-up to the Olympics that they never kept."