Ex-NBA player Tibor Pleiss experienced the earthquake as a basketball professional with the Turkish club Anadolu Efes and felt the consequences. “When the training is over, you know: Now we will hear bad news again. You can then see how the affected facial expressions form again,” said Pleiss in an interview with “Sportschau”.
During the earthquake, the 33-year-old was in the sauna of his home in Istanbul on his non-training day and found out about the disaster on television. “It was very bad to watch,” the player described the situation. Pleiß moved to Turkey in 2016 and initially played for Galatasaray Istanbul until 2017. After a stopover at the Valencia Basket Club in Spain, he returned to the country on the Bosphorus in 2018, which the basketball pro now describes as his “second home”.
“I have the feeling that everyone knows someone who knows someone who has family down there. You see a lot of busy but also sad faces,” said Pleiss. For the 105-time German national player, it is a “self-evident” to help the people affected. “After practice, I grabbed a team-mate and we went to the supermarket together and tried to do our part. We loaded up two cars and took them there.”
With a view to the continuation of the game in Turkey and the Turkish Cup scheduled for the coming week, Pleiß also sees a possible change for the people. “The news just shows horrific images of collapsed buildings, of children who have been buried. Any escape from this is welcomed with joy. I think many people are longing for something more positive.”