Airport mishap: How Bogdan Bogdanovic lost Partizan's priceless EuroLeague trophy / News - Basketnews.com

Ex-Partizan guard Bogdan Bogdanovic lost the original 1992 EuroLeague trophy, won by the black-and-white team, at the Frankfurt airport on the way to Fuenlabrada.

Credit: FIBA Credit FIBA

Partizan Belgrade's trophy room boasts a big collection of accomplishments, but absent is the crown jewel -- the EuroLeague title clinched in Istanbul in 1992.

As revealed by the former Partizan head coach, Dusko Vujosevic, the trophy displayed in the team's office is not the original piece but a replica.

The story behind this features current Atlanta Hawks shooting guard and former Partizan player Bogdan Bogdanovic. Bogi, a member of Partizan from 2010 to 2014, was entrusted with the 1992 EuroLeague trophy during a trip to Fuenlabrada for a friendly tournament in 2012 but made a blunder.

Vujosevic recounted the astonishing story on the Sportlight show, telling about an incident at the Frankfurt airport.

"When I returned from CSKA to Partizan, we went to some tournament. I think it was Fuenlabrada. And now, they are carrying the EuroLeague trophy won in 1992, but they want Bogdan Bogdanovic to be the one in charge of it. It seems to me that it happened at the airport in Frankfurt. And at one point, he comes to me and says: 'I lost the cup.'

"You have no idea what players manage to do in those airports. Especially if they take a nap there on those chairs. One gets up, goes to the wrong side, and everyone follows him," the legendary coach said.

Vujocevic then continued the story by saying that he didn't immediately disclose the mishap, thinking there might be a chance of recovering the original trophy. Vujosevic made calls to friends with connections in Germany to investigate.

"I didn't tell them [club members] right away. I thought there was a chance. I called friends who have good connections in Germany so they could see. I was looking for ways to protect Bogdan.

"When I called the club, well, then they informed someone, maybe Mladjan Silobad [Partizan executive], and they came to me like: 'There is no cup!' When the teams go, you have no idea what's going on there..."

In an attempt to replace the lost original, the Serbian club made a replica, intending to gift it to Fuenlabrada. However, despite the initial plan, the real cup never resurfaced.

The trail of the trophy went cold, leaving the replica as the permanent artifact in Partizan's black-and-white trophy room.

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