A group that played in a basketball tournament in Russia usurped the colors and name of the Colombian public group, the country’s basketball organization said Thursday.
The organization said it will make a legitimate move “for the ill-advised use of our picture and logo” and that it never got a proper proposal to partake in the tournament in the Russian city of Perm.
The Colombian Basketball League didn’t concede endorsement to any club to take part in the Russian Friendship Cup,” the association said in a statement.
The group was steered 155-53 by a nearby Perm squad prior to losing 108-57 to Venezuela.
The president of the Russian organization, previous NBA player Andrei Kirilenko, said they did nothing ill-advised.
“We might want to emphasize that every one of our interactions with the Colombian group occurred exclusively through true correspondence channels,” Kirilenko told Match television. “Our position remains unaltered: all communications and coordination are led exclusively through checked and official sources.”
The group wearing Colombia’s colors was scheduled to play Russia on Friday, however the game was dropped.
After the first game, we understand that the ongoing level of the Colombian group is falling behind what was generally anticipated, which causes some disappointment for us all,” Kirilenko said. “In such manner, we have previously revised the schedule and organization of the tournament to ensure a more adjusted and serious rivalry.
