A.E.K Athens published official statement related to the latest match of the EHF Challenge Cup TOP 16 in which they meet Israeli team Ramat Hasharon.
Handball-Planet.com presenting the full statement without changes…
Over the past two days and after the great appearance and qualification of our team, we became aware of reports in Israeli and international media, which refer to the AEK – SGS Ramat Hasharon game, presenting a picture that is unrelated to reality.
AEK informs the public of the following:
1. On the field, only the flags imposed by the regulations, namely the European Federation (EHF) and the Challenge Cup, were posted. No other flag has been raised, including Greek. So the claim that AEK did not allow or deny the suspension of the Israeli flag is completely untrue and pretentious.
2. Our club fully respects its opponents and demonstrates it in practice, as in the case of the clash with Ramat Hasharon in Athens. For example, during the training session on Friday at 15:30, Ramat was given the weights and balance instruments (Bosu) of our team. Additionally, a guest list was allowed to members of the Israeli community residing in Athens who were placed in the VIP space of the stands, celebrating the goals of their team and raising the flags of Israel without creating the slightest incident.
3. The Technical Meeting did not take place in the stands as it is falsely presented, but in an appropriately shaped space, outside the space where the stands are located. It is also clarified that the Technical Meeting changed time at the request of the visiting team so that its representatives could be found in time for their compatriots, in the center of Athens, which was taken into account by all the participants in the meeting, who accepted the guest’s request. Please note that the two guests’ representatives did not raise any objections or disagreements during or at the end of the Technical Meeting. They were much more likely to want to finish soon enough to find their fellow countrymen, something that was done by AEK.
4. Match cards were printed before and after the match. It is a question of claiming that our opponents did not receive copies.
5. Another thing that is very surprising is the claim about temperature. While the start time of the match was 13:30, the central air conditioning system, which was set at 20C, was operating at 11:00. And in this case, no complaints about temperature, before, during, or after the end of the match, were made by the representatives of Ramat Hasharon. At the disposal of each official is the certificate of consumption and heating expenditure of the Gymnasium, which is owned by the Greek State.
6. With regard to smoking, take into account that it is forbidden by law in enclosed spaces, while there is space behind the stands where spectators who wish to smoke go out of the gym.
7. The “complaint” that Palestine’s flags were raised during the fight, comes to complete a series of false allegations. The only flags that were raised while the game was playing, and without any problems, were the flags of Israel, from the invited VIP team friends. Again, it is a question, because the representatives of Ramat resort to these false allegations.
AEK proved on the pitch that it was the best team of this pair, defeating both matches with a difference of 16 goals. If this causes problems for others, let’s not try with communicative tricks and lies, turn the interest of public opinion elsewhere.
In cooperation with the Hellenic Federation, we will express our views to the EHF if requested.
