kayhan.ir

News ID: 22316
Publish Date : 04 January 2016 - 22:17

Turkish Basketball Federation’s “Fans Against Violence” Takes Debate Directly to Fans

ISTANBUL (FIBA) - leading figures in the Turkish basketball community met with fan representatives from 10 different clubs to discuss strategies to end fan violence in basketball.
With the Turkish Basketball Federation (TBF) entering 2016, its outreach to fans across the country is picking up steam. As part of Fans against Violence, a project supported by the European Commission, 23 fan representatives supporting 10 different clubs in six different cities met at Abdi Ipekci Arena to share their perspectives on eliminating fan violence in basketball. The meeting marked the first time that Turkish basketball fans had been included in an official TBF platform.
"As part of the Fans against Violence project we wanted to extend the microphone to fans and directly hear from them,” said Emir Turam, TBF Chief Advisor for Project Development and International Affairs. "But this is about more than just listening to our fans; it’s about taking action to achieve our common goals and increasing the impact of our sport.”
Fan representatives/supporters of Anadolu Efes, Banvit, Besiktas, Bursaspor, Darussafaka Dogus, Fenerbahce, Galatasaray, Karsiyaka, Sakarya Buyuksehir Belediye Spor and Trabzonspor Medical Park expressed their views on topics ranging from the attendance of their teams’ away games to more effective ways of dealing with fan misbehaviour, particularly through education.
Alongside fans, participants included Spor Toto Basketball League Director Samer Senbayrak, TBF Communications Director Esat Yilmaer, national broadcaster TRT correspondent Ayse Nur Alkaya, HaberTurk basketball reporter Gokhan Ture, former senior women’s national team manager Mihriban Oguz and representatives of leading Turkish clubs, including Anadolu Efes, Banvit, Besiktas, and Darussafaka Dogus.
The platform provided fans the opportunity to engage with not just each other, but with club officials, league officials and the media.
"This fan platform, which brings basketball’s various stakeholders together, is something we want to continue,” Senbayrak said. "The Spor Toto Basketball League aspires to be Europe’s top league on and off the court. We want fans of opposing teams to watch games together without incident, so this is a programme we would definitely like to build on in the future.”
Participants expressed a preference for the participation of senior level club officials at future gatherings. Two more meetings are in the works, tentatively scheduled for May and November 2016.
"2016 is a big year for not just TBF, but for basketball worldwide,” Turam said. "The new year represents a critical opportunity to build on this momentum and work together to create the positive environment at basketball games that our fans, players, and officials deserve.”