The saga of the basketball site for the preliminary phase of the Paris 2024 Games is probably coming to an end. But it is not yet at its denouement. Questioned Monday, December 12 by L’Equipe during press conference of end of the year of the FIBA, the secretary general of the international authority of the discipline, Andreas Zagklis, recognized that progress had been made during the last two months, “more positive than in the past”. But he insisted once again on the requirement of a perfectly air-conditioned Pierre-Mauroy stadium in Lille, to ensure the safety of the players. Recalling that the northern city had recorded high temperatures in recent years, during the period of the Olympic Games, Andreas Zagklis explained, “We are ready to compromise (by playing the tournament on two different sites), but we will not compromise on the health of athletes.” The former Greek lawyer, recently reappointed as secretary general until 2031, acknowledged that a technical solution was certainly possible. “But it will be an expensive solution,” he anticipates.
