A
All in one!
Guest
Well what do you think Spain? Are you guys ready for all the different type of ethnic groups and races to come to your country without giving monkey chants and pulling your eyes back to look Chinese. I feel you guys are not ready for any of the events and none should be hosted in spain.. And i know most of your spaniards will come on here and say Oh spain is not racist, they were just having fun like you usually do so dont even to there.. I thought spain was a pretty bright and educated country but i'm think i may be wrong as spain is still living in the hitler time period or something..
MADRID (AP) -- Spain is a serious contender to host the 2016 Olympics and 2018 World Cup, but a failure to clamp down on fans' racist and extremist behavior could end up compromising both bids.
Buoyed by Rafael Nadal's Grand Slam tennis wins, the national football team's European Championship triumph and Alberto Contador's sweep of cycling's three premier events, Spain is in a golden age of sports.
It would seem the perfect time to land the two biggest sporting spectacles on earth.
But scenes of offensive fan behavior still tarnish the country's image, an issue that came to the fore when spectators at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium greeted England's black football players with monkey chants during a friendly in 2004.
And the problem extends to sports such as Formula One, where fans don't known when to differentiate between competitive spirit and racism.
"In Spain, there is a profound problem and the fight against racism hasn't been taken seriously. The problem is a lack of education and sensibility when it comes to tackling racism," Esteban Ibarra, head of the Movement Against Intolerance, told The Associated Press.
"The public would react positively to a campaign, but there is a real lack of political push in this fight."
Spain's friendly against England on Wednesday — the teams' first meeting since the events in the Spanish capital in November 2004 — comes at a crucial time.
It's a day before Madrid submits its documents to the International Olympic Committee outlining its bid plans for the 2016 Games, and a little over a week after Spain confirmed its joint bid with Portugal for the 2018 World Cup.
"It's going to be a great test to see if we've overcome that episode or if we're just continuing on with this problem," said Ibarra, who has been charting racial incidents for 20 years.
Monkey chants still rain down on players across the country, with Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o of Cameroon nearly quitting a game at Zaragoza in February 2006 because of the abuse.
"When I first experienced it, I didn't even hear it. It was reporters that brought it to my attention," said Julian De Guzman, a Canadian of Filipino-Jamaican heritage who plays for Deportivo La Coruna. "Then I was watching (a replay of) the game and I was like 'Wow.' It was pretty surprising and kind of disappointing.
"The fines are never enough. They're just a slap of the hand and they're back at it again. It doesn't really do anything."
Last month, Real Madrid was fined 3,000 euros ($3,900) after some fans displayed fascist banners, made gestures and chanted slogans with reference to the death of their opponents and the gas chamber.
The Spanish football federation said fines correspond to current laws, but preferred not to discuss the issue at length.
"In Spain, we take all preventive measures possible to fight racism," spokesman Jorge Carretero said. "I don't see any type of problem with racism in Spanish football. The same problems exist in England, in Germany, in France, and elsewhere."
Spain's bid with Portugal for the 2018 World Cup is up against competition from England, the United States, Russia, Japan, Australia and Netherlands-Belgium, among others. The host will be selected by FIFA in December 2010.
"There is no place in football for corruption and racism," FIFA said in a statement sent to the AP. "Football, given its global reach, power and influence has a duty to act in a responsible and progressive manner."
Spanish Olympic Committee president Alejandro Blanco doesn't believe recent events will bear any influence on Madrid's chances of hosting the 2016 Games, with Tokyo, Chicago and Rio de Janeiro also in the race. The IOC will choose the host city on Oct. 2.
"These things can happen in any stadium in any country in the world, from Brazil to Italy to anywhere," Blanco said. "It's too easy to just say that Spain is a racist country, when it is not."
The Spanish government passed a law against racism in sport in July 2007 in a bid to clamp down on the behavior, but experts say that it is not being used. Clubs can be fined up to $842,000 and deducted points, places and even relegated for serious incidents, but it's up to the league to enforce such punishments.
MADRID (AP) -- Spain is a serious contender to host the 2016 Olympics and 2018 World Cup, but a failure to clamp down on fans' racist and extremist behavior could end up compromising both bids.
Buoyed by Rafael Nadal's Grand Slam tennis wins, the national football team's European Championship triumph and Alberto Contador's sweep of cycling's three premier events, Spain is in a golden age of sports.
It would seem the perfect time to land the two biggest sporting spectacles on earth.
But scenes of offensive fan behavior still tarnish the country's image, an issue that came to the fore when spectators at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium greeted England's black football players with monkey chants during a friendly in 2004.
And the problem extends to sports such as Formula One, where fans don't known when to differentiate between competitive spirit and racism.
"In Spain, there is a profound problem and the fight against racism hasn't been taken seriously. The problem is a lack of education and sensibility when it comes to tackling racism," Esteban Ibarra, head of the Movement Against Intolerance, told The Associated Press.
"The public would react positively to a campaign, but there is a real lack of political push in this fight."
Spain's friendly against England on Wednesday — the teams' first meeting since the events in the Spanish capital in November 2004 — comes at a crucial time.
It's a day before Madrid submits its documents to the International Olympic Committee outlining its bid plans for the 2016 Games, and a little over a week after Spain confirmed its joint bid with Portugal for the 2018 World Cup.
"It's going to be a great test to see if we've overcome that episode or if we're just continuing on with this problem," said Ibarra, who has been charting racial incidents for 20 years.
Monkey chants still rain down on players across the country, with Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o of Cameroon nearly quitting a game at Zaragoza in February 2006 because of the abuse.
"When I first experienced it, I didn't even hear it. It was reporters that brought it to my attention," said Julian De Guzman, a Canadian of Filipino-Jamaican heritage who plays for Deportivo La Coruna. "Then I was watching (a replay of) the game and I was like 'Wow.' It was pretty surprising and kind of disappointing.
"The fines are never enough. They're just a slap of the hand and they're back at it again. It doesn't really do anything."
Last month, Real Madrid was fined 3,000 euros ($3,900) after some fans displayed fascist banners, made gestures and chanted slogans with reference to the death of their opponents and the gas chamber.
The Spanish football federation said fines correspond to current laws, but preferred not to discuss the issue at length.
"In Spain, we take all preventive measures possible to fight racism," spokesman Jorge Carretero said. "I don't see any type of problem with racism in Spanish football. The same problems exist in England, in Germany, in France, and elsewhere."
Spain's bid with Portugal for the 2018 World Cup is up against competition from England, the United States, Russia, Japan, Australia and Netherlands-Belgium, among others. The host will be selected by FIFA in December 2010.
"There is no place in football for corruption and racism," FIFA said in a statement sent to the AP. "Football, given its global reach, power and influence has a duty to act in a responsible and progressive manner."
Spanish Olympic Committee president Alejandro Blanco doesn't believe recent events will bear any influence on Madrid's chances of hosting the 2016 Games, with Tokyo, Chicago and Rio de Janeiro also in the race. The IOC will choose the host city on Oct. 2.
"These things can happen in any stadium in any country in the world, from Brazil to Italy to anywhere," Blanco said. "It's too easy to just say that Spain is a racist country, when it is not."
The Spanish government passed a law against racism in sport in July 2007 in a bid to clamp down on the behavior, but experts say that it is not being used. Clubs can be fined up to $842,000 and deducted points, places and even relegated for serious incidents, but it's up to the league to enforce such punishments.