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Hoyas, Bayi make amends after friendly ends in a mass brawl
Source: Agencies |
August 20, 2011, Saturday
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Print Edition
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A "FRIENDSHIP" game between Washington's Georgetown Hoyas and Bayi Rockets ended in a brawl at Beijing's Olympic Stadium on Thursday. It was unclear what triggered the fighting.
Players exchanged blows, someone in the crowd flung a chair, and fans tossed full water bottles at the Hoyas players and coaches as they headed to the locker room, writing off the rest of the game. The Hoyas are on a 10-day trip in China, including other scheduled matches in Shanghai.
Vice Foreign Minister Cui Tiankai played down the incident yesterday as a "small incident".
"But it is my understanding that this morning the skies have cleared," he said. "The two sides have made up."
Cui said the Chinese side had gone to the airport to send off the American team, adding that "we're happy to see this" and that both teams had exchanged mementoes.
"Tonight, two great teams played a very competitive game that unfortunately ended after heated exchanges with both teams," coach John Thompson III said in a statement on Georgetown's website.
"We sincerely regret that this situation occurred. We remain grateful for the opportunity our student-athletes are having to engage in a sport they love here in China, while strengthening their understanding of a nation we respect and admire at Georgetown University."
The American team will visit cultural sites, participate in basketball clinics with Chinese students and play four exhibition matches against the Chinese Basketball Association sides.
Players exchanged blows, someone in the crowd flung a chair, and fans tossed full water bottles at the Hoyas players and coaches as they headed to the locker room, writing off the rest of the game. The Hoyas are on a 10-day trip in China, including other scheduled matches in Shanghai.
Vice Foreign Minister Cui Tiankai played down the incident yesterday as a "small incident".
"But it is my understanding that this morning the skies have cleared," he said. "The two sides have made up."
Cui said the Chinese side had gone to the airport to send off the American team, adding that "we're happy to see this" and that both teams had exchanged mementoes.
"Tonight, two great teams played a very competitive game that unfortunately ended after heated exchanges with both teams," coach John Thompson III said in a statement on Georgetown's website.
"We sincerely regret that this situation occurred. We remain grateful for the opportunity our student-athletes are having to engage in a sport they love here in China, while strengthening their understanding of a nation we respect and admire at Georgetown University."
The American team will visit cultural sites, participate in basketball clinics with Chinese students and play four exhibition matches against the Chinese Basketball Association sides.
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