MOSCOW (Women National team)  - Russian basketball lost one of its most recognisable figures on Monday when Shabtai von Kalmanovic was gunned down close to his home in Moscow.

Owner and general manager of Women’s EuroLeague club Spartak Moscow Region-Vidnoje, Kalmanovic was ambushed as a car drove by and opened fire on his Mercedes, according to a statement by Russian police.

According to the Associated Press, Kalmanovic, who was born in Soviet Lithuania, emigrated to Israel in 1971 where he was later convicted of espionage by an Israeli court, serving five years in prison. In the decade following his release, Kalmanovic relocated to Moscow where he quickly became a public figure as one of the most prominent millionaires in post-Soviet Russia, turning his focus to the world of sports and entertainment.

Fanatic about basketball and often seen celebrating eccentrically courtside with his players, his financial support helped Zalgiris Kaunas win the Euroleague in 1999 while his involvement with Russia’s women’s basketball team in Athens, captained by his third wife Ana Arkhipova, contributed to the team securing an Olympic bronze medal in 2004.

Spartak’s Euroleague match against Hungarian side Szeviep Szeged, due to take place on Wednesday 4th November, has been postponed to a date yet to be determined.

Shabtai von Kalmanovic leaves behind a wife and two young children.

FIBA