After Evan Fournier, Nicolas Batum and Vincent Poirier, it's Rudy Gobert's turn to rise up.
The choice of the room where the start of the basketball tournament will be played during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, at the Parc des Expositions de la Porte de Versailles, creates controversy.
"I'm not going to play in a room where I hit my head when I shoot, so it doesn't make sense", launched the pivot of the Utah Jazz, Sunday at a press conference after the victory of the Jazz against the Knicks.
Initially planned to be played at Bercy, the preliminary phases were moved following cascading modifications.
The Olympic swimming pool having been relocated from Saint-Denis to La Défense, gymnastics and badminton were repatriated to Bercy and Arena 2, located Porte de la Chapelle, forcing basketball, at least in its preliminary phase,
The number 1 collective sport of the Olympic Games will then return to the AccorHotels Arena for its final phase.
A decision much criticized by all the players… The room is 9 meters high, a regulatory ceiling but very low in basketball, preventing the installation of a cube with the scores recorded.
In addition, the air conditioning system could make the room very humid with a slippery and dangerous floor.
The place is usually used for various exhibitions, including the agricultural show, or examination rooms.
"It's once in a lifetime, once in a career"
“It's a missed opportunity for me, added Rudy Gobert.
I hope they will make the right decisions.
I love agriculture, but it's true that to play basketball... It's clear that it's a little lack of respect all the same for our sport and what our team is accomplishing these last years.
Ultimately a bit for our fans too, because we still have a lot of basketball fans in France.
The Olympics at home is once in a lifetime, once in a career.
It's the most watched team sport of the Olympics, the best players in the world come, and in addition, the French team won a silver medal in Tokyo (last summer)..."
Nicolas Batum, who plays for the Los Angeles Clippers, had sent him a tweet directly mentioning the president of the organizing committee, Tony Estanguet, and the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo.
Taking a photo of the agricultural show, he criticized the organization of the Games “for letting the best basketball players play there”, adding that we must “do better for basketball.
Real Madrid player, Frenchman Vincent Poirier also commented: "I don't know who is in charge of selecting the venues for the 2024 Olympics, but we're going to have to wake up because you're putting us to shame. eyes of the world there”.
