Colombia’s fake basketball team cheats Russia in a friendly match

A strange situation unfolded in Perm, Russia, during an international basketball tournament, when a fictitious Colombian team tricked the organizers and played in the tournament recently, according to marca.com. This surreal incident, which could be the plot of a fictional film, turned out to be a real hoax.

Due to international sanctions following its invasion of Ukraine, Russia was unable to participate in international basketball games. To compensate, the country organized a friendly tournament involving Russia’s national team, Parma BC from Perm, and the national teams of Venezuela and Colombia. However, the supposed performance of the Colombian team raised suspicions from the beginning. In the opening game, the team was outscored 41-2 in the first quarter and eventually lost 155-53 to the Russian side. The second game had a similar result, with Venezuela beating the Colombians 107-58. The poor performances led to the suspension of the tournament.

The Colombian Basketball Federation soon issued a statement clarifying that the team was not officially recognized by them and had nothing to do with their organization. They announced plans to take legal action over the misuse of their image, logo and national flag.

Andrei Kirilenko, president of the Russian Basketball Federation and a former NBA player, responded by stating that all interactions with the Colombian team had been conducted through official channels. Kirilenko assured that their communications and coordination had been through verified sources.

The deception was orchestrated by Christian David Mosquera Duran, a Colombian residing in Russia, who appeared as player number 6 in the team photo. Mosquera Duran managed to hack the email account of the Colombian federation and deceive the Russian organizers, who failed to verify the identity of the players. In addition, Mosquera Duran secured plane tickets and four-star hotel accommodation for his friends, who were impersonating the Colombian team. The fake team, made up of players from the third division of 3×3 basketball in Kazan, showed their lack of skill through their poor performance.