VANCOUVER — Former basketball superstar Steve Nash is seeking a court order banning the use of his name or image on nearly two dozen fitness clubs in British Columbia.
Nash says in a civil lawsuit filed in B.C. Supreme Court that SNFW fitness has operated facilities since October 2014 under the name Steve Nash Fitness World without compensating his own company.
The claim says Nash's Arizona-based company B & L Holdings agreed in November 2006 to allow unlimited use of his name and image to a firm that was then operating two facilities called Steve Nash Fitness Clubs.
Besides SNFW Fitness, defendants in the claim include Nash's former business partners — Mark Mastrov, the owner of the NBA Sacramento Kings, and Quebec businessman Leonard Schlemm.
None of the allegations have been proven in court and a statement of defence hasn't yet been filed with the court.
The Canadian athlete retired last year while playing for the Los Angeles Lakers after a stellar career in which he was named the most valuable player in the National Basketball Association.