Third game in Greek Basketball League finals series postponed

The government's reaction was immediate regarding the events that took place on Sunday at the Peace and Friendship Stadium during the second game in the best-of-five finals series of the Greek Basket League, between Olympiakos and Panathinaikos.

As government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis announced on Monday, the third final, which was scheduled to take place on Wednesday, has been postponed.

Additionally, he said, on the morning of the same day, the owners of the two basketball clubs have been summoned to the ministry for a meeting with the Deputy Sports Minister Giannis Vroutsis, to make explicit commitments that this situation will come to an end. Otherwise, this year's championship will be permanently suspended.

As the spokesperson pointed out, 15 months ago, the government undertook a series of legislative initiatives and decisions aimed at putting an end to incidents of violence that have no place in professional sports. These included automatic penalties, harsher criminal sentences, and mandatory surveillance cameras and entry controls, Marinakis said, adding: 
"From the start, we remained committed to enforcing these measures, and with the majority of games taking place without incidents - or with the imposition of strict yet fair penalties where situations risked getting out of hand - it became clear that where there is will and consistency, there are also results.

"Yesterday’s scenes do no credit to professional sports, and even less so to two teams that have been leading figures at the European level for many years. Wherever there are criminal or disciplinary responsibilities, they will be assigned, and the law will be enforced to the fullest extent.

"The Government has proven, through actions and not just words, that there is zero tolerance for toxic phenomena of violence and delinquency - whether they occur in stadiums, universities, or anywhere else."

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