Olympiacos appeal spectator ban, Dimitris Giannakopoulos reacts / News - Basketnews.com

Giannakopoulos wrote, "As long as the owners of the teams do not accept the punishments when there is violence in the stadiums and try to avoid them with funny arguments, nothing will change in this country."

Credit: IMAGO/ANE Edition Credit IMAGO/ANE Edition

Before Game 1 of the Greek League final series between Olympiacos Piraeus and Panathinaikos Athens, a series of incidents occurred that resulted in the punishment of Olympiacos.

Free throws this season

76%14,0Points made:14,0Accuracy:76,0%Place in standings:9Record max:25Record min:5Most made FTs:Kostas SloukasTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

Some of Olympiacos fans threw Molotov cocktails, firecrackers, and various objects, causing damage to the Greens' dressing room. Fortunately, no serious injuries were reported.

As a consequence, if Game 5 is necessary in this series, it will take place in an empty Peace and Friendship Stadium.

Following the official announcement of the punishment, Olympiacos promptly appealed to the Supreme Council for the settlement of sports-related issues (ACEAD), an institution responsible for any conflict resolution in Greek sports, to have their penalty revoked.

In response to the latter move, Panathinaikos owner Dimitris Giannakopoulos expressed his disappointment with Olympiacos' appeal in an Instagram post. He criticized the fact that team owners often try to avoid punishments for violence in stadiums by using weak arguments.

"As long as the owners of the teams do not accept the punishments when there is violence in the stadiums and try to avoid them with funny arguments, nothing will change in this country," Giannakopoulos wrote.

"I was saddened to see that Olympiacos appealed to the ASEAD to avoid being punished for the attack that our team endured in SEF... They will probably say that they were anarchists who saw the light and entered... Or that it happened outside the court... Funny things.

"As Panathinaikos, we pledge that just as we will never "Hellenize" foreigners, so we will never appeal for any punishment that comes our way for violence on the court."

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