Basketball Euroleague Final Four Paris 2010

 

With the recent basketball Euroleague Final Four having just taken place (and where both Greek teams have managed to fail miserably) I remembered the one I had attended 15 years ago. We started experiencing this competition back in the late 80's when another Greek team, Aris from Salonica, would take part for several consecutive years. They never got past the semi final though and they usually even lost at the 3rd place play-off game, ending up in 4th place. Then, in 1993, it took place in Athens, with another team from Salonica qualifying, PAOK. They were eliminated in the semi final as well. And that was the year when I noticed how difficult it was to get tickets for that competition, even though it was taking place in my own country. In 1994, it took place in Tel Aviv and that's when we knew that a Greek team would finally make it to the final. Two Greek teams, Olympiacos and Panathinaikos qualified and they would play in the semi final. Olympiacos won, but then lost in the final. The exact same thing happened the following year, in 1995 in Saragossa. It seemed that for a Greek team to win this trophy they would have to qualify alone. And that's what happened the following two years when Panathinaikos won in 1996 in Paris and Olympiacos won in 1997 in Rome. AEK qualified in 1998 but lost in the final. Panathinaikos would go on to win several of these trophies in the next decace (starting with 2000 in Salonica), while Olympiacos would win two back-to-back tournaments in 2012 and 2013 in Istanbul and London respectively.

The main reason I wanted to attend one of these tournaments was its format: With one ticket you get to watch 4 games over a period of three days. Two semi finals on the first day, then a day off and on the third day, the 3rd place play off and the final. But it was always so difficult to get tickets. So, in 2010, in Paris, I applied for tickets before I knew which teams would qualify. As it happened, Olympiacos qualified. I received the tickets via courier and was surprised to see that had I received 4 instead of the one I had ordered. I didn't take any notice though at that time.

When the day came I got on my first of two flights. I would go via Rome because it was even difficult to find a flight on that day. What's more, the second flight from Rome to Paris was delayed and there was a lot of traffic on the runway both in Rome and in Paris delaying us even further. So I was a bit late for the first semi final between Barcelona and CSKA Moscow. And even more late when they wouldn't let me in. They sent me to the box office where my 4 original tickets were exchanged with the correct one. So I finally got in and watched Barcelona beat CSKA 64-54. 

 

 

From that very first game it seemed that one of the main features of the tournament were the cheerleaders. I had posted several videos of them on YouTube and didn't receive many favourable moments. They were characterized as naked pole dancers.

During the break between the two semi finals I decided to wander inside Palais Omnisports De Bercy. The organizers had made sure that we could not mingle with fans from the other three teams. (I was placed with the Olympiacos supporters even though I had applied for a ticket as an independent). I headed to the bar where I realized that the cheapest thing I could buy was 5 euros and all other prices were divisible by 5. The reason for this was that we would not be given any coins which we weren't allowed to have with us anyway. This is because of a habit mainly Greek fans have: throwing coins at the referee and the players of their opponents.

The second semi final between Partizan and Olympiacos seemed to be going Partizan's way for most of the game, but Olympiacos won literally at the last minute 80-83 and qualified for the final. 

    

The following day was a day off. I spent it by visiting the only major Paris attraction I gad yet to see: Disneyland. This visit is documented in one of my early posts, written in Greek here. I hope I will soon translate it in English.

Then came Sunday, the day of the finals. By this time many of the fans whose team has lost prefer to sell their tickets to the winning teams. I would not have done the same even if Olympiacos had lost. I love basketball and would not have missed a European final, no matter who was playing!

The first match was the 3rd place play off where CSKA beat Partizan 90-88. It was disrupted for a while when Russian fans erected a sign about an incident that had taken place 15 years earlier in 1995 when the water given to the Russian players at a match between hosts Olympiacos and CSKA wewre allegedly poisoned.

   

 

And then it was time for the final. Barcelona played Olympiacos. Even though Olympiacos had won their first European trophy back in 1997 against Barcelona with the widest margin at that time, this time there was no contest. Barcelona won 86-68.

That was the end of a wonderful weekend. Two more flights were waiting for me. For the hurney back, I would go via Munich. This gave me a chance to eat Pretzels and Weisswurst for breakfast. Before I left however, I took a photo of my seat, which was my home for these two days. 

And as I got out I took a photo of the venue which listed the concerts that were going to take place there.

I would see Eric Clapton (with Steve Winwood) in Insatnbul the following month, and a week after that I would see Aerosmith in Athens. I would see Bon Jovi in Athens as well, the following year. Lady GaGa would have to wait until 2014...

I would be back at Palais Omnisports De Bercy though, three years later to see The Who (after having seen Bruce Springsteen in the same city...)

RESULTS;
Semi Finals:
Barcelona - CSKA 64-54
Partizan - Olympiacos 80-83
3rd Place Play Off:
CSKA - Partizan 90-88
Final:
Barcelona - Olympiacos 86-68

FINAL STANDINGS:

1. Barcelona
2. Olympiacos
3. CSKA
4. Partizan

UEFA Super Cup 2023

My blog consists mainly of concert posts, but I've only written a sports post once and that had to do with the London 2012 Olympic Games. I do attend sports events every once in a while, though, most notably Basketball European and World Championships (with a Final Four thrown in the mix) and a Euro 2008 match in Salzburg. But the football match I attended in August was definitely an important one, worth writing a blog post about: The 2023 UEFA Super Cup final. This is a match between the Champions League winner and the Europa League winner. Every year I go into a lot of trouble in order to find a TV channel or a web site to see it. This year, as I was searching for the channel that would show it, I realized that I didn't need one. It would be held here in Greece. So, I applied for a ticket, didn't get one, but when some of the successful applicants did not pick up theirs, I finally got one. I was supporting Manchester City that night, because even though I am an Arsenal fan, I usually support the English teams (apart from Tot****am) on international games. I had actually been to the Manchester City store on my last visit to Manchester back in 2016 when I went to see The Stone Roses at Manchester City's stadium! And since I had already been to matches where Arsenal and Manchester United had played, City was one team that I had never seen "live".

As with every major international sports tournament, this was a celebration and a chance to meet people from other countries in one's city. My first stop on that day was Thissio where a big replica of the cup was on display.

My next stop was Piraeus, close to Karaiskaki Stadium where the final was taking place in order to visit the Fan Festival. This was an area where fans from both teams and local people as well could get together, eat and drink, play 5-a-side football and listen to music.

 

 

On top of that, across the street from the Fan Festival, the Champions League, Europa League and Super Cup trophies were on display (along with Manchester City's domestic trophies).

Then it was on to the stadium where we watched a football match with both teams scoring one goal each. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As it ended in a 1-1 draw, the winner was to be decided on penalties, but without extra time played beforehand, which means that the match never had the chance to go into "boring" status. I recorded the penalty shoot-out on video.

 

One thing that hasn't changed since the 90's is that Gala's "Freed From Desire" is played in all major sporting events

 

 

 

After the match and the award ceremony we set off on our way home where the local organizers had told us the metro would be running extra services to all destinations. However, in typical Greek fashion, mine stopped halfway through and we found ourselves stranded somewhere in Athens in the early hours of the morning until we were saved by a night bus.

 

London 2012 Olympic Games

While this year's Olympic Games are currently taking place in Rio De Janeiro, let's take a look at the last Olympics I attended, in London 4 years ago. Because the Olympics were hosted in the city where I had been living for about 10 years, I simply had to go. And because of my extensive stay in the UK, and the fact that even though I am a Bruce Springsteen fan, my general musical tastes are more British rather than American oriented, I was able to appreciate them more, especially the ceremonies for which there was a certain level of criticism in the Greek media who were wondering "how would the British conpete with [ancient] Greek civilization" (Their words, not mine). I particurarly enjoyed the closing ceremony which was a true celebration of British music.

So it was that on an August night, less than a month after seeing Bruce Springsteen at the Hard Rock Calling festival I was back in London, and back at Earl's Court in the same hostel.

All the rumours we had been hearing were proven false. Heathrow Airport was empty, I cruised through passport control, London Underground was also empty, and I did not have to suffer any security checks. Those very nice people of the organising commitee had also thrown in a travelcard so I could travel around the city for free on the day of the event I was attending

Access to the Olympic Park was extremely easy. The only security check needed was an airport-style one to enter the park. And that was all!

My destination was the Aquatics Centre for the Synchronised Swimming event. The reason I chose this sport, was because it was one of the few I wanted to, but could not attend at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games (and yes, I do need to write a post about those games, but I first need to gather all the photos, most of which are not digital so they need to be scanned, plus the footage from my friend's video camera). Anyway, I was extremely lucky to be allocated a ticket at the event I had chosen while some Londoners could not get any tickets at all!

And here is my very own seat as stated on my ticket.

As was the case with Athens in 2004, London also had its own Zeppelin flying above the city.

Of course there was the obligatory shop to buy souvenirs from. And it was huge. With a huge queue to get in!

Traditional British food (ie fish and chips) was on offer...

...as was traditional British alcohol (ie beer)!

And since the Underground was running later in the night than usual a midnight stroll through Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus was a must.

Back then there was still an HMV record shop where I checked in...

...in order to buy the official albums of the games...

 ...and found out there was going be an extra one later, which I would have to order from Amazon!

The next day, in Earl's Court, near the hostel, there was another games venue...

...as there was in Greenwich...

...where there was also a new cable car.

Just before my return trip a found another souvenir shop at Heathrow.

So what do I like the Olympic Games so much and why do I try to be there myself? It's not just about watching some sports (which are usually sports not easy to watch through the rest of the year which is mostly filled with football and basketball here in Greece). It is also about all the people from all corners of the world that gather at the host city and the general excitement that is in the air. Those who took time to be out and about in Athens during the 2004 games will know what I mean!