The driving force of the Bosnian women's basketball national team is their unity, the team's manager Razija Mujanovic said on Sunday in a press conference at the Sarajevo's landmark City Hall, where the team and staff addressed the local media for the first time after the historic success they made at the EuroBasket tournament.
“The power of our girls is their unity. As I always say, I don't like to talk too much, let the results speak,” Mujanovic told the reporters.
For the first time in history, the women's basketball team advanced from the group stage to the quarter-finals of an international competition and finally ranked as the fifth team in Europe. They also secured a ticket for the world championship qualifiers, which made participation in the EuroBasket this year unique.
The team and the staff returned on Sunday to Sarajevo, where they were welcomed by the group of citizens and their families. Due to the epidemic restrictions, large gatherings were not allowed.
Speaking to N1 upon the arrival, head coach Goran Lojo said no one expected the team to make such a big success but that their good energy was crucial.
“We complement one another. The unity within the team is crucial and there would be no result without it,” he said.
Lojo praised the play of Jonquel Jones, a Bahama-born, naturalised Bosnian team member, who achieved double-double performance in all six games that the team played in the competition.
“Jonquel showed her impact, the girl had a double-double achievement in all six games. Unfortunately, she couldn't be here with us, we said goodbye in Frankfurt this morning,” he added.
Later, during the press conference at the City Hall, Lojo stressed that new challenges are lying ahead of the team and that they will try to turn them into good results.
“We were not in the championship for 22 years, the best result so far was one single victory. Now we won four out of six games that we played,” he added.
The national team members were welcomed by Sarajevo mayor Benjamina Karic.
“Thank you for making us proud. Thank you for doing more for this country than any politician has done in years. I am not speaking to you today as a politician or mayor but as a Sarajevan whose heart is filled with joy,” said Karic.
“This victory and this success belong to you only. Keep it, be happy and work hard for future success,” she added.
The mayor also told the players that all the funds that were initially planned for the celebration and the welcoming ceremony have been forwarded to the Basketball Federation and for the young players – just as the national team members asked to be done.
“We did so and everything will be sent to the Federation through the budget rebalance so we can make something positive and fix the mistake that was done to you before you left for the championship,” she said, referring to the lack of the financial support for the team.
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