Paul J. Weber
San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker, of France, celebrates a three-point basket in the closing seconds of an NBA basketball game against the Sacramento Kings on Sunday, Dec. 29, 2013, in San Antonio. San Antonio won 112-104. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)
December 30, 2013 - 12:10 PM
SAN ANTONIO - San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker is apologizing for a photograph that shows him making the same gesture with anti-Semitic connotations also made by French soccer star Nicolas Anelka this weekend.
The photograph shows Parker and a French comedian making a gesture known in France as a "quenelle," which critics describe as inverted Nazi salute. Parker said Monday in a statement released by the Spurs that the photograph was taken three years ago.
Parker, who is French, said he didn't know at the time that "it could be in any way offensive or harmful." He said he thought it was part of a comedy act.
The photo surfaced after Anelka made the same gesture celebrating a goal in an English Premier League game Saturday, causing an outcry in France.
News from © The Associated Press, 2013