Scandal rocks the European Basketball Championship.
Turkey is now threatening to leave the tournament after superstar Furkan Korkmaz was said to have been attacked by rival players and security guards in the players’ tunnel.
– If the surveillance footage does not reach us, we will leave the tournament, says federation vice president Omar Onan, according to Eurohoops.
It was during the fourth period between Turkey and the mother country Georgia that the temperature increased. Turkey’s Furkan Korkmaz and Georgia’s Duda Sanadze got into a fight and had to leave the field with disqualifying fouls.
But the quarrel should not stop there. According to the Turkish Federation, Korkmaz was attacked by three Georgian players and security guards in the players’ tunnel after leaving the stadium.
– When Furkan Korkmaz was walking in the corridor to the dressing room with our coach, he was attacked by Georgian players who did not play with the kicked player and security guards. Omer Onan, vice-president of the Turkish Federation, said that a player who goes to the dressing room should not be attacked.
“I don’t think we’re stupid”
Turkey is now threatening to withdraw from the European Basketball Championship.
– I am addressing FIBA (International Basketball Federation) and I have told FIBA’s travel representative as well. Don’t think we are stupid. They will give us minute-by-minute surveillance footage of the trail without missing a thing. Onan says, if we don’t get the surveillance footage, we will leave the tournament.
Turkey also lodged a protest over the result of the match, which Georgia allegedly won 88-83 after 22 seconds.
The match was 22 seconds shorter. Assistant coach Hakan Demir says according to Eurohoops that it wasn’t just one or two seconds, but 22 seconds that makes us believe the situation wasn’t just a mistake, and also condemns Korkmaz’s attack as a daily player in the NBA and Philadelphia 76ers.
– We came here to play basketball, nothing else. Everything should remain on the field, but unfortunately a huge scandal broke out off the field. We came here to play basketball, not the box. We are very troubled by the security vulnerabilities that we experienced today.