November 23, 2007
Believe me today’s cigarettes will make your day – they will have pretty much everything in it you always wanted to end your week. Enjoy!
- I am sure a lot of Germans and even Euroleague fans will remember Marcin Gortat who played for RheinEnergie Cologne last year. He finally made the jump to the NBA! Yeah another Polish guy who made it! Well, he hasn’t played one game so far but at least he can wear his Orlando Magic sweater without being asked why he is wearing it. To understand better: at the ALL Star game of the German League a few years a go he was running around in his Orland Magic sweater and nobody really knew why. Oh, something else happened at the All Star day’s Slam Dunk contest – including Marcin as Stop Mike Lupica tells us: Finally, the real reason I posted this, so I could use this video of Marcin Gortat attempting to dunk over 12 mascots laying on a pile on the floor. Oh, this reminds me of this guy who dunked over a french mascot ..
- We have been talking a lot about the Panathinaikos fans and their “Gate 13”. I got in contact with “babul_13″ who is part of the Gate13. He told me the whole story about”GATE13”: Panathinaikos was the first team in Greece that had organized supporters. In late 60s the first fan club (Ó.Ï.È. 13 – Gate 13 Fan Club) was established by a group of youngsters for two reasons. First reason was to find tickets for the small stadium easier and the second was to prevent fans of other teams to come among them. That fan club was best organized and developed during the early 70s, the same season that Panathinaikos qualified to the final of European Championship against Ajax. The enthusiasm and great effort that Gate 13 was always showing to the team, meant to be something like an era for other fans. By the end of 70s some members of Gate 13 founded new fan clubs, with N.O.P.O. and Green Devils to be the leading of the upcoming ones. The 1978-79 season was a season that violent riots took place all over Greece. Next season the ‘clean up’ starts from Gate 13, where the first hooligan actions turned up. The police sent undercover forces into the gate and the whole ‘clean-up’ operation took nearly two years. In middle 80s Giorgos Vardinogiannis (the president of the team) decided to shut down every fan club and founded PA.LE.FI.P., which was the only fan club that period. In 1988 some members of PA.LE.FI.P., having Ó.Ï.È. 13 as a vision, established a new fan club, the Green Cockney Club, which was located in 87 Socratous St. on the sixth floor. The next year two new clubs are established; Mad Boys and Fan Club Zografou. In 1993 these two fan clubs and some other with the same visions and ideas created Athens Fans. From that year until present, three are the main events: in 1995 the separation of Mad Boys from Athens Fans, the establishment of Underground and later on the establishment of Greens. Another season, 1997-98, is marked with the worst and violent riots, the year that Giorgos Vardinogiannis once again decides to shut down every fan club and leaves only PA.LE.FI.P., which was on his side all these years. The only fan clubs that are now open are about 35 and are all independent with the name of their city or area as a fan club name.
- Talking of Greek fans, I have have to mention the crowd of Aris TT Bank which is another Euroleague team from Thessaloniki, Greece – which isn’t so clear looking at the team’s name right? Well, I decided today that I want to go there and be part of this crowd.
- Remember I was talking about people in the north of Europe are not that emotional and more clam than in the south? I guess this women’s coach from Latvia which is pretty north proves me wrong! Make sure you read the subtitle!
- Since I spend my summers in Philadelphia I got to know the designer label “UndrCrwn”. For some U.S. people this label might ring a bell – yes Gilbert Arenas was wearing these shoes in a NBA game and will wear the new edition again in April. I am wearing UndrCrwn shoes here in Italy and people keep asking me if you can by them here – well watch these pictures of a shop in Bologna – I am not even sure if you can buy these shoes anywhere in the world! Lucky Italians!
- Arvydas Macijauskas of Olympiacos is this weeks’ MVP of the Euroleague. Just in case you had 112 unspent credits for the Euroleague Fantasy challenge you should have bought him before Wednesday! People just love him – especially Olympiakos fans!
- BallinEurope reader Arkadios raised an interesting question: Why do I think that this will be the most popular post of this blog? Well Arkadios, I guess her, her and HER might be the reason. Don’t you agree?
- I am sure everybody will watch the Euroleague games now that I recommended, right? The Barca-Real game was worth it – just to watch Jaka Lakovic and even the Bamberg-Fenerbahce game was worth watching it – just for the dunk in Demond Greene’s face!
Don’t you feel much better after these cigarettes?
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This post was published on November 23, 2007
