Ukraine's Euro 2012 organizing committee head on Tuesday angrily rejected former England international Sol Campbell's claims that black fans who "risk" traveling to the country "could end up coming back in a coffin."
The defender, 37, claimed racism is so bad in the Eastern European nation where England play their Euro 2012 group games, that foreign supporters were risking brutal attacks on the streets if they made the trip.
But the reality is different, insisted Markiyan Lubkivskiy, the director of the local organizing committee.
"If Campbell has such a vision, it is his personal vision, it can't extend to the entire country," he said.
"It is simply insulting to us. We do not understand what the purpose of this statement is."
Campbell, who is black, told the BBC's Panorama program on Monday that UEFA should not have granted hosting rights to Poland and Ukraine while perceived problems such as racism persist.
"I think that they were wrong, because what they should say is that if you want this tournament you sort your problems out," Campbell said.
"Stay at home. Watch it on TV. Don't even risk it, because you could end up coming back in a coffin."
England winger Theo Walcott has announced on Twitter that his father is not traveling because of racism concerns, and the father of midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain told Sky Sports News that his family would also skip the tournament.
England start their campaign on June 11 against France in Donetsk, before traveling to Kiev to face Sweden on June 15 and return to Donetsk four days later to play against co-hosting Ukraine.
According to the English football supporters' federation, the country's fans have purchased no more than 2,000 tickets for the Donetsk games.
