By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
Olympiacos beat Panionios; Evan Fournier was ejected after an incident with a court-side fan; and after the game, Sasha Vezenkov discussed an even bigger problem plaguing Greek sports.
This weekend’s game between crosstown rivals in Thessaloniki, PAOK and Aris, for the Greek basketball league, was postponed due to the murder of a PAOK fan.
The police officially denied that the incident, which is still under investigation, had any connection to sports; there are reports to the contrary, and for security reasons, the game was not played.
Three years ago, an Aris fan was murdered by PAOK fans in a similar incident.
Vezenkov, who grew up in Thessaloniki, playing for Aris, talked about the latest crime and called for this vicious circle of violence to end.
Speaking to the Greek national television after the game, Vezenkov said: “What’s happening in Greece is sad, and I believe that each of us, from the position we hold, has a responsibility to speak up. Because how long will innocent lives keep being lost just because someone doesn’t like the jersey another person is wearing or the team they support?
Then we go to the stadiums, and everyone says, “Let this be the last time.” We all hold a minute of silence, and then it happens again. Why? We have experienced this many times in recent years. A mother waits at home for her child to return, and he never comes back. A mother loses her child because he simply went to do this.
Until when the jersey someone wears, the team someone supports, where someone can walk, and what they are allowed to say, will be an issue? We live in the most beautiful country in the world. All of us have a responsibility, each from our own position, to protect sport.
Sport should be about educating kids. It is meant to unite people, to fill stadiums and arenas so that we can all enjoy ourselves. The reality is that one team will win and another will lose. One year, someone will be doing well, the next year they may not be. Not everyone can win. But the issue is not victory or defeat—the issue is understanding how long young people will continue to lose their lives in the name of the team they support.
I don’t know who needs to intervene. I don’t know what needs to be done. I am not the person responsible. I simply felt that I had to say this because we truly play basketball for the people. We want people in the arenas, we want them to be full—fans of our team and of the others as well. But it is sad and unfair, and everyone needs to reflect on their responsibilities.
How much longer? We are in 2026, and this has been happening for 40 years, from what I have read and what I know. At some point, all of this must stop. I wanted to say it because it is truly sad and unfair.“