Lthe facilities of the Llobregat Sports Park today hosted the basketball finals of the twentieth edition of the Pau Gasol Academy by Santander. More of 460 male and female players of 25 nationalities They gathered this morning to put an end to a week full of sport, healthy habits, fun and values.
The day began with a warm-up and seasonal dynamics session in which the campers from the different sections participated. They then began 3×3 and 5×5 competitions of the different academy programs: PG Academy, Special Olympics y Rising Stars. The finals have also hosted the triple and two ball competitions. At the end of this part, the end of the program has taken place PG Academy.
Pau Gasol, former professional basketball player, member of the IOC Athletes Commission and president of the Gasol Foundation and Gasol16 Ventures, and Phil Handyassistant coach on the Los Angeles Lakers for several years, have been the coaches of a team, while Felipe Reyesformer professional basketball player, and Jusuf NurkiPhoenix Suns player in the
NBA, have been the other team’s coaches. Subsequently, the long-awaited match took place between the participants of the Rising Stars program, the section of the Academy made up of future basketball promises, and the players of the Tony Parker Adequate AcademyTony Parker’s basketball academy, who have come to mark the academy’s twentieth anniversary.
Throughout the week, program participants Rising Stars They have enjoyed technical training clinics with top-level trainers such as Phil Handy, Anna Montañana, Pedro Martínez and Jaume Ponsarnauand training talks from the international referee, Alberto Baena. Furthermore, on Friday, July 5, the players of the PG Academy program were able to enjoy, together with Pau Gasolof the PGA Olympics, a recreational-sports day, where different team activities were carried out in the Pau Negre Municipal Sports Complex in Barcelona.
What began with a dream to promote grassroots sports has evolved to become an international reference campus
“This edition is very special for me, because we celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the academy, achieving historic participation. What began with a dream to promote grassroots sports has evolved to become a reference campus at an international level, that goes beyond basketball training and seeks to promote healthy values and habits among the new generations. “I sincerely thank everyone who contributes to making this academy a reality year after year.”
The event concluded with the presentation of distinctions to the winners of the different competitions and the distribution of medals. The Pau Gasol Academy by Santander It has had the main sponsorship of Banco Santander which, year after year, renews its commitment to the project within its vocation of supporting amateur sports. The academy has also had Movistar, Nike, Visalia, Iberia y Grand Hyatt Barcelona as a collaborating partner, with MARCA as a media partner, with the FEB as a technical partner and with the suppliers Aquaservice, Fernández Global Fruit Group, Occident, Grupo IFA, Indya, AC Scholarships Agency and Elite Sports Academy.
