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United in the heart of Athens: One Team brings inclusion to the Final Four FanZone
Olympiacos and Panathinaikos participants shared the court at Zappeion Square |
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The EuroLeague Final Four FanZone at Zappeion Square is a place where rivalries run deep, but on Saturday morning it became something altogether different: a stage for inclusion, community and the power of basketball to bring people together.
One Team participants and coaches from Olympiacos Piraeus and Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens organized and hosted the session, which brought two programs with a shared mission to the very heart of Athens – and to the public eye of Final Four weekend.
"There have been times when we've worked together through One Team before, at Bouncing For Good events," said Panathinaikos One Team Manager Michalis Stefanidis. "But this was the first time that both One Team squads – Panathinaikos and Olympiacos – joined forces with our Community Partners and shared the court. We are truly very excited, because this way we can raise awareness among all the fans here in the FanZone so they can appreciate and recognize the value of One Team and this contribution from our teams."
The Olympiacos One Team program works with adults from EPSYME who are living with autism and intellectual disabilities, using basketball as a tool to have a meaningful positive impact on their daily lives. Panathinaikos, meanwhile, partners with Special Olympics Hellas to help athletes build vital life skills through sport. Different clubs, different communities, but the same belief that basketball can make a real difference.
"Friendship, generosity and respect are more important than any rivalry," said Olympiacos One Team Manager Penny Giovanovits. "When we're on the floor, we don't see them as Panathinaikos at all. We're all playing together, working together. And when our participants join – the social groups, the vulnerable groups we support – they are simply people who want to enjoy and experience the moment, to feel that energy."
That spirit was on full display in a session designed to celebrate both individual club identity and collective unity. Each group took their turn in the spotlight, stepping onto the court to showcase their skills and favorite activities while the other club cheered them on from the sidelines. But the day built toward something bigger: a joint finale in which participants from Olympiacos and Panathinaikos took to the court together as teammates, proving that at moments like this, there is only one team that matters.
"Wins and losses come and go – they're just moments," added Stefanidis. "One Team gives us the opportunity to create something that lasts and that has an impact on society. We are truly very grateful to be running this program."
The iconic setting made the occasion all the more resonant. In a city buzzing with basketball, at the heart of one of the sport's great weekends, participants who had never shared a court before found themselves side by side – not as rivals, but as teammates, creating memories that will last long after the final buzzer sounds.
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