Our deepest condolences to the family, friends, teammates, and loved ones of Kinu Rochford.
We are also keeping those injured in our thoughts as they recover.
This loss is being felt throughout the entire New York City basketball community.
Rest in peace, Kinu 🕊️
- Rucker Park Streetball
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| Malaysia international Faisal Abdul Halim was attacked at a mall on Sunday when he was splashed with acid, causing fourth-degree burns which have affected his speech and movement. How Foo Yeen/Getty Images |
The Football Association of Malaysia has recommended players consider hiring bodyguards while Johor Darul Ta'zim has beefed up security for its squad after their midfielder Safiq Rahim became the third player to be attacked over the last week.
Safiq, a former Malaysia captain, had his car windscreen smashed by unknown assailants late on Tuesday.
Selangor winger Faisal Abdul Halim was left in critical condition after being splashed with acid at a shopping mall on Sunday, while national team player Akhyar Rashid was injured in a robbery outside his home in the eastern state of Terengganu last week, media reported.
Terengganu police have said both attacks were unrelated, but the incidents have sparked concern in Malaysia where violence against athletes is rare.
Safiq, who was unharmed in the incident, said in a copy of a police report shared on Instagram that two men on a motorcycle approached his car with a hammer and smashed his rear windscreen.
"Did not expect that I would be attacked next near the JDT training centre. We need to be vigilant," the 36-year-old said in an accompanying caption.
JDT, who are run by the crown prince of the Johor royal family, called on police to investigate the attack on Safiq and said it had advised players to be cautious of their surroundings and about what they post on social media.
"The incident, together with the recent attacks on Akhyar Rashid and Faisal Halim, have no place in football," JDT chief executive officer Alistair Edwards said in a statement on the team's Facebook page.
FAM president Hamidin Amin said players should take additional safety measures, such as hiring personal bodyguards.
"While not all players may have the financial means to hire bodyguards, it's a sensible idea, especially for star players who may attract unwanted attention," he was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times daily on Tuesday.
- Reuters
SAINT-ETIENNE, France (AP) — Eight buses carrying Marseille fans back from Clermont after a French league game on Saturday night were pelted with objects thrown from a bridge, the the local prefecture said on Sunday.
The latest bus attack to mar the French league this season occured at around 1:30 a.m. on the A47 motorway heading to Lyon, the Loire prefecture said in a statement, on X, adding that “heavy projectiles” were dropped from an overhead bridge. Some Marseille fans then got off and damaged a car, injuring the driver inside.
An official inquest into the incidents has been opened.
Chunks of rubble, mortar and shards of glass were found inside some of Marseille's buses upon arrival, according to French media reports, and some Marseille fans who got off reportedly had baseball bats ready for a confrontation.
Last month, French soccer club Nice said one of its fans was injured when a bus carrying supporters was pelted with stones after a league game at Lyon.
Earlier this season, Lyon’s team bus was pelted with objects as it approached bitter rival Marseille’s stadium and former Lyon coach Fabio Grosso sustained a serious head injury.
Buses carrying Brest supporters were also targeted after games at Paris Saint-Germain and Montpellier, where a bus was hit by rocks reportedly thrown from a motorway bridge.
This season has been marred by increasing soccer violence in France and elsewhere in Europe, including an incident in which a Greek fan was killed in August following a clash before a Champions League game between AEK Athens and Dinamo Zagreb.
A Nantes fan was stabbed and killed in Nantes before a match against Nice in early December.
Last Saturday, Lille hooligans brawled with Toulouse and PSG hooligans — who have an alliance — in the city center the night before Toulouse's home game with Toulouse.
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| AP |
NYON, Switzerland (AP) — UEFA banned Legia Warsaw fans from five away games in European competitions on Wednesday after a second outbreak of violence outside stadiums this season.
Aston Villa cited in a complaint to UEFA “ unprecedented violence ” from Legia fans ahead of the teams’ game on Nov. 30 in the Europa Conference League in Birmingham, England.
Legia’s ticket allocation had been cut by local authorities in response to disorder at the team’s game in the Netherlands at AZ Alkmaar in October.
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| Reuters |
The president of top tier Turkish soccer club Ankaragucu, Faruk Koca, was arrested on Tuesday for punching a referee in the face at the end of a match, with the official telling police that Koca had threatened to kill him.
The arrest followed an outbreak of violence during Super Lig club Ankaragucu's home match against Rizespor on Monday evening.
Referee Halil Umut Meler, who was also kicked while lying on the pitch, said that Koca had also threatened him and his colleagues, state-owned Anadolu news agency reported.
"Faruk Koca punched me under my left eye; I fell to the ground. While I was on the ground, other people kicked me in the face and other parts of my body many times," he said.
"Koca said to me and my colleagues, 'I will finish you'. Addressing me, he said, 'I will kill you'."
The Turkish court which made the arrest ruling also remanded in custody two other suspects over the incident.
Bordeaux's hopes of promotion from Ligue 2 are in doubt after their final match of the season was abandoned after a Rodez player was attacked by a fan.
