A few days prior to the departing of the delegation to China, the leader of Panathinaikos, Dimitris Diamantidis spoke of the importance of the team’s presence in the Asian country. Panathinaikos is the first European Basketball team to be going to China for a series of competitive and other events during 11-17 September and more specifically in the towns Foshan, Guangzhou and Beijing.
More specifically the captain of Panathinaikos stated:
“We are very happy to be traveling to China. Apart from representing Panathinaikos it is also mighty significant that we are representing the entire European basketball. It will be a great experience for all of us, we will try to do our best on every level during our entire presence in China. It is also significant that for the first time a European basketball team will be going to China and we are proud that we, as Panathinaikos, are paving the way. Sports and more specifically basketball, unites the nations, no matter how large one might be or no matter how far apart one might be from the other. I must repeat that is a great joy to us because we are the first European team to be travelling and participating in a series of events in China”.
Commenting on the same matter, the Marketing Director of Panathinaikos BC, Ilias Katsogiannis made the following statement:
“The Panathinaikos BC family is getting ready to take on yet another challenge. Not a competitive one however this time, as the thousands it has taken on up to date but a commercial one. We are to become the first team in the history of European basketball to be organizing such a tour. In our country it is not yet 100% clear that the top athletic team are at the same time top industries, that need to expand towards new markets and also to expand their customary data base, aiming towards the institution of new fund sources. In Panathinaikos BC we know that the road of extroversion and investment is the only way to be able to create a prospect of a continuance of a successful course.
The trip to China is committed no only to play a friendly preseason game. Through its duration the society of China will experience a close encounter with the European basketball for the first time, our team will participate in events of a social content, there will be an exchange of views on various matters, the cultures of the two nations will merge.
I believe that this is only the beginning and I am certain that we are showing the way to all great basketball clubs. Any results to come will show up gradually and in due time.
No one had a contract with success but whoever does not take a risk surely has a contract with failure”.
