Tear gas used outside arena delays tip-off of Olympiacos-Panathinaikos Game 1 / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: EUROKINISSI SPORTS Credit EUROKINISSI SPORTS

The Olympiacos Piraeus - Panathinaikos OPAP Athens basketball rivalries are always fiery and emotional. Game 1 of the Greek Basketball League finals was not an exception.

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About ten minutes before the start of Game 1, the players and members of the teams of both teams returned in a hurry to their respective locker rooms, interrupting the warm-up process.

There was tension outside the Peace and Friendship Stadium with the local police using tear gas. It created a difficult atmosphere inside the Stadium for both the fans and the players. According to reports, many people experienced difficulties breathing.

Following the situation, the referees of the match decided that in order for everyone to be safe and not to be burdened by the tear gas that passed inside the Stadium the teams should go to the locker rooms.

As a result, the start of the match was delayed by 15 minutes, and is scheduled to start at 20:20 CET.

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According to the press release issued by the Greek police, no tear gas was used. The announcement mentions that the fumes coming from the fans' flares were the cause of the suffocating atmosphere.

"No tear gas was used by the police outside the Peace and Friendship Stadium, but the fans threw flares and smoke at the police forces and probably it was the fumes that made the players go to the locker room until the atmosphere cleared and the game could start.

The incident outside the stadium took place when fans who had just left the nearby train station tried to enter the installation through Doors 6 and 7 and upon seeing the police squads, they began to throw objects and flares. Police forces tried to deter them, but did not use tear gas and the incident didn't last long. No arrests were recorded."

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