The German men’s basketball team’s 107-88 success against Lithuania to reach the European Championship last 16 was overshadowed by captain Dennis Schröder reporting racism from the crowd.
“You can insult me, but monkey noises are something I don’t respect and don’t accept. Racism has no place in this sport,” Schröder told reporters on Saturday after hearing the abuse on his way to the locker room in Finland.
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According to the German Basketball Federation (DBB), with the help of the German coaching team, two people were identified and subsequently ejected from the Nokia Arena in Tampere.
Acting coach Alan Ibrahimagic said: “I noticed that Dennis was very upset – and rightly so. There is no place for such things in sport and competition. We hope that this will settle down and can be resolved somehow. We can only fight against it.”
