Spectacular presentation of the men's basketball team

• Endesa's headquarters in Madrid was the scene of the spectacular presentation of the 2021 Men's National Team, which is already preparing for this summer's Olympic Games.
• An event that included speeches from several players and the coach, the president of the FEB, the CEO of Endesa, the deputy mayor of Madrid and the president of the CSD.

Spectacular presentation of the 2021 Men's National Team this afternoon in Madrid. The players, convened by Sergio Scariolo to prepare for the Tokyo Olympic Games, appeared before the institutional representatives, the sponsors and the media at an event held at the headquarters of Endesa.

The players appeared in groups, and five of them answered brief questions from the host of the event, journalist Rubén Martín. The first was Ricky Rubio, who commented that "although we just started the player's meeting, this Team always aspires to the maximum. It's a special tournament in which we aspire to the maximum"

For the captain, Rudy Fernández, "I'm very proud to be able to say that these are going to be my fifth Games. I have the same enthusiasm as in 2004. I am privileged to have been able to live alongside the stars and legends of Spanish sport. I'm so proud to be the captain, following the steps of players such as Felipe Reyes and Juan Carlos Navarro".

Juancho Hernangómez assured us that "not even in our wildest dreams could my brother Willy and I have imagined being world champions. We have to keep learning from these players. There is a lot of training and giving it your all, and, just maybe, you might have the chance to fight for the medals at the Games."

"We are part of La Familia, of a team. Whatever happens during the season, we always want to get together and go back to the National Team, "said Victor Claver.

The last player to take the floor was Pau Gasol, who remarked that "wearing this shirt is a pride and being part of this group is a pleasure. I've worked away for a long time and I'm very happy to have this opportunity now. We set ourselves very ambitious goals".

And it's Sergio Scariolo's turn. The coach explained that "it is very nice to have shared so many emotions and experiences with this team. Seeing players from so many different generations shows that this process has been done well. It's very significant. I think we have gone in the right direction. We went well past the forecasts. Our demand is to go out and compete and maintain our identity, which is to be a recognisable team".

The Captain of the Fans

After words from the five players' representatives and the coach, the most amusing part of the event arrived: The presentation of the Captain of the Fans, the young Victor Molina, who showed himself to be one of the heroes of basketball during the pandemic. Victor is a 12 year-old from Seville who went viral because his father appeared on Twitter last September, comforting him because he was the only child in his school who wanted to play basketball. The large community of BasketLovers who love this sport reacted to the thread of support in droves, sending Victor thousands of messages in which they told him how basketball has improved their lives and encouraging him carrying on playing this sport. The avalanche of affection for his love of basketball has led Endesa to choose Victor as the Captain of the Fans for this summer.

Although it has been a surprise to him, Victor was not shy on stage. "This is a big surprise. I'm speechless," he said excitedly, and logically received the affection of all those present, before starring with Rudy in the photo of the two captains".

The five games of the Tour

They then spoke about the team's preparation tour over the next few weeks. Preparation games that will start on Saturday, 3 July at the Fonteta in Valencia in a clash against Iran. The journey will continue two days later at the WiZink Center in Madrid, again against the reigning runner-up of Asia-Oceania.

After these first two games, Spain will face a double duel with France: the first in the Martín Carpena in Malaga and the second in Paris. They will be two meetings shared with the Women's National Team, which will also be in full preparation phase for the Games and will play two matches against the French. Therefore, the Spain-France session will be twofold in both Malaga and in Paris.

The team's Olympic preparation tour, led by Sergio Scariolo, will culminate on 18 July in Las Vegas, where it will play a spectacular clash against the United States, re-living two of the last three Olympic finals.

Institutional closure

The event continued with a brief dialogue between the president of the FEB, Jorge Garbajosa, and the CEO of Endesa, José Bogas. Garbajosa pointed out that "we are at home at Endesa. Now is the time to prepare well and resume the team's mechanisms after a year with no activity. Regardless of whether or not they come home with a medal, I'm sure we'll be very proud of these players on 9 August." And Bogas stressed that, "we are delighted to host this presentation of the National Team here today. When we decided to sponsor basketball, we did so because of how these players represent the values we are proud of. We will always be proud to sponsor this National Team and its values."  .

The event was closed by the institutional interventions of the Deputy Mayor of Madrid, Begoña Villacís, and the President of the High Council for Sports, José Manuel Franco. Villacís assured that "this legendary team goes beyond the history of sport and basketball, it is the history of Spain. The National Team unites us and makes us proud. The National Team is an engine of inspiration." And Franco wanted to highlight that "beyond their physical height, the National Team is made up of great people. We cannot demand anything of you because whatever you do we cannot demand anything of you. Every day, you represent the amazing family that is Spanish sports".