:mad: ATHENS, Oct 19 Reuters - A top Greek sports journalist who is a key witness into Olympics scandals, including that of Greece’s top sprinters, was attacked yesterday in what his newspaper called an attempted assassination.
Police said Filippos Sirigos, the sports editor of the daily Eleftherotypia newspaper, was stabbed several times and beaten with crowbars in central Athens yesterday by at least two assailants in motorcycle helmets as he left a studio.
This was an attempt to kill him,'' Eleftherotypia editor Serafim Fintanidis told reporters. This was not an attack to scare him, it was an assassination attempt.’’
Sirigos was in hospital in stable condition with stomach and head wounds, authorities said.
Prosecutors have called Sirigos as a witness in several high-profile sports investigations, including the case of Greece’s top two sprinters who withdrew from August’s Athens Olympics following a missed doping test.
He was sued for libel by Athens games chief Gianna Angelopoulos and her husband, who have demanded 10 million euro in compensation following a series of stories alleging her involvement in Olympics sponsoring programmes through a company.
Sirigos has also written stories about corruption in Greece’s soccer clubs and doping allegations in weightlifting and athletics.
The attack was front-page news in Greek newspapers and on television.
Politicians called the attack a serious threat to press freedom.