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It is already the fifth month without salaries for the athletes from the male water polo team of Olympiakos. Although retail, the team has brought to Greece series of victories internationally. Over the last 12 years white-red won 11 championships, but paradoxically they have not received their salaries since the end of 2009 ... In response to huge delays in the payment of money in the beginning of this month the swimmers suspended all practices. It was a really dangerous step, having in mind that this is exactly the time for most intensive training of the team for the play off competitions.

The reaction of the athletes, however, did not managed to scare the team management. The position, which Olympiakos supports is unequivocal - first come the priorities, then the salaries. And priority now appears to be the construction of a new swimming pool in Piraeus... The grandiose plans for the new pool require resources, which however lack. So for the moment players have to forget about their salaries. For how long nobody knows. After the meeting, the captain of the team Thodoris Hadziteodorou with members of the board Yannis Lambros and Stelios Kuvaris the last assured that competitors will see their bank accounts full in very short time. This however, did not happen. What will the athletes do from now on is not clear.

From Olympiakos insist that finding resources for the new jewel-pool is essential in the situation of a crisis like this. According to the words of the club president Yiannis Sangelidis – the swimming pool is a vital investment, and wages of the players can wait. Sangelidis asks for understanding and patience in this difficult from an economic point of view moment. He ensure that swimmers will not lose their salaries and that he is only talking about a delay. He also emphasizes that Olympiakos has never been a debtor of his players. More important now is the realization of a dream that has existed for years. Because the new pool is a dream of thousands of fans of Olympiakos. According to Sangelidis modern pool is particularly important investment in Greek sports, which should be strengthened. Now as never before sports academies and schools are needed, as there are expected to be born and future big names of sport in the country. Sangelidis believes that this is a mandatory step at a time in which transfers of foreign players are becoming too expensive for the Greek teams.

Photo: gazetta.gr