By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
After official press releases on the Greek basketball scandal by Panathinaikos, Olympiacos, and AEK, and several public statements on the case, Dimitris Giannakopoulos made two social media posts about the case.
In the first, the owner of Panathinaikos asks the “eternal rival” Olympiacos to take more action on the case.
In the first post he writes the following:
“Fact 1: The owners of Olympiacos recently reminded us that it is the biggest team in Europe…”
“Fact 2: Jerseys and money were found in the possession of referees who are currently in prison for match-fixing.”
“Fact 3: In recent years, Olympiacos has intervened in support of these imprisoned referees, arguing that it was wrong for another team to raise concerns—concerns that have since been vindicated—regarding the unsuitability of these officials…”
“Fact 4: All of Greece watched the finals and either felt revulsion or expressed dismay—regardless of whether their own team won or lost—at the high-handed, arbitrary manner in which the matches were officiated by these imprisoned referees, whom Olympiacos had previously defended.”
“Fact 5: Olympiacos—arbitrarily, and without any prior incident or trouble in the basketball sphere—decides, in the name of a ‘legendary’ ‘cleansing’ of basketball, to humiliate itself. In doing so, it takes an extreme step—a move that the government of the time unfortunately had to contend with, forced to intervene so as not to be left exposed to the high-handed, bullying tactics of a club whose own owners—for reasons of their own—had relegated it to the A2 division.”
“Fact 6: I must acknowledge that the amount of money they have spent on complaints and legal proceedings—ostensibly in favor of ‘cleansing’ basketball—exceeds the total spent by all the rest of us combined.”
“Fact 7: Regarding all the titles won in recent years, one of these specific referees has officiated the overwhelming majority of the matches.”
“Fact 8: To this day—aside from making references to me and any statements I may have made—‘the biggest club in Europe’ has offered no response regarding all the aforementioned facts concerning basketball.” “THEY HAVE NO OPINION???”
“HOW CAN THEY ABSTAIN DURING THE GREATEST OPPORTUNITY TO DATE TO CLEAN UP BASKETBALL—ESPECIALLY NOW THAT THERE IS ACTUAL EVIDENCE, RATHER THAN JUST THE OPINIONS OF ZEALOUS OFFICIALS?”
“These questions are directed at you, and they will keep coming back—no matter how often you shift your agenda.”
“‘Legendary tough guys’ and ‘good boys’ shouldn’t be giving you any trouble.”
In his second post, Giannakopoulos talks about the future of the sport in Europe.
“A personal view—not focusing on legal compliance, but rather on what is best for basketball.”
“Liolios out: Liolios must go, as his judgment is clouded by arrogance and ego. It’s not about the money… He should be barred from any further involvement. He must fully disclose everything he knows (as the man at the top, he knows it all). This buys time for a new era in basketball… If that fails, then step in and seize everything.”
“Referees: A short prison sentence, provided they give a full account of the source of the bribes… otherwise, life imprisonment. Exemplary criminal penalties for those who paid the bribes—both legally and at the club level (including amateur clubs). A mandatory life ban for any referee who fails to report a colleague or a club official who attempts to offer a bribe.”
“Teams should be empowered to report—with evidence—any attempted match-fixing, and be rewarded in some way for doing so.”
“That would put an immediate, definitive end to it all.”
“And finally, the State should provide significant funding to the new Hellenic Basketball Federation and the Central Referees’ Committee to immediately develop a capable group of new referees.”
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