In a historical ruling, NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced on Tuesday the lifelong ban of the Los Angeles Clippers' owner, billionaire Donald Sterling, after the scandal he was involved in after he made racist comments, leaked by TMZ.
The measure forbids Donald Sterling from entering any NBA facilities or contact anyone in it, as well as participating in any event related to the NBA, CNN reported.
Furthermore, Donald Sterling must pay a $2.5 million dollar fine and sell the team as soon as possible due to his racist statements which have raised serious doubts on racism in sports.
The harsh ruling, without a precedent, was welcomed and supported by NBA owners and player, who demanded a quick response against Donald Sterling, who had asked his girlfriend not to invite African American people with her to his team's games, and not to take pictures with them.
The scandal caused by the recordings was so big that even United States President Barack Obama commented on it and described Sterling's statements as "deeply offensive", reported The Independent.
During the press conference on Tuesday, Adam Silver said he is "personally crushed" by Donald Sterling's statements and assured that "Those comments contradict the principles of inclusion and respect of our multicultural multiethnic league," according to the Boston Globe.
It's worth noting that in this case where the racism of an NBA team owner is made evident comes in the same week in which the Brazilian defense for the Barcelona football club, Dani Alves, was attacked during a match in Spain, by someone who threw a banana at him.
Danis Alves' answer, who picked up the fruit and ate it in protest, had a great impact in the rest of the world, causing sports figures and the media to unite in a campaign against racism in soccer.
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