Russia coach David Blatt has offered an olive branch to British basketball, admitting he was wrong to claim that Team GB had undeservingly taken Russia's place at the London Olympics.
Britain received an automatic place as host. As a result, when the top three European teams at the Eurobasket tournament qualified, only the finalists received spots in London, which left third-placed Russia out in the cold.
Speaking to RIA Novosti in March, Blatt claimed that Britain had qualified "at our expense," and, when asked whether Britain deserved to be at the Olympics, replied: "Sports-wise, no."
But Blatt backtracked Tuesday.
“I was wrong about it. They didn’t take our place, that was the misconception that I had," he said.
"The British team got a place because of the decision of the Olympic powers that be that wanted the local team. That’s OK, that’s their right to decide."
Britain has invested large sums in basketball to create a team ready for the Olympics, and their recent development was worthy of acclaim, Blatt said.
"I have nothing but respect for the program. They’ve done great things, they’ve made great progress in the last six, seven years. Coach [Chris] Finch does an amazing job, they’ve got a player of the highest level, Luol Deng, who leads the team."
Russia will try to take one of the last three Olympic spots at a special qualification tournament in Venezuela, where it will open with group stage games against South Korea and the Dominican Republic.
