Romanian Basketball Women Juniors Face Discrimination In France, Italy

The organizers of the tournament in France, unfolded near Lille, said they would provide lodging for the attending teams.

The only team not lodged in a hotel was Romania’s, which was scattered among various families of Romanians.

The reason cited by the organizers was that they wanted to prevent potential incidents, which could have occurred if Romania’s team would have been accommodated as a whole, at one hotel in the city, and would have thus attracted the attention of co-nationals living in the area, explained the president of the Romanian Basketball Federation, Carmen Tocala.

The official added that this is the first time a basketball team faces such treatment.

"We have decided to notify, through a letter, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, because what happened is not normal. We need to do something to improve Romania’s image abroad, because we all have to suffer," Tocala said.

In the other tournament, held in Naples, Italy, the Romanian players faced a similar treatment.

"There have always been problems for us in Italy. Last year nobody came near Romania’s team either. On the streets and in the stores, when they saw the track suits marked Romania, they pulled the shades. In the tournaments, our girls were never applauded until the end, when they would lose to the local team. Oftentimes we were booed upon entering the court. This is unacceptable. I thought the situation had changed, but no, on the contrary even," Tocala said.

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