Spain's national basketball team became European champion on Sunday after defeating Serbia 85-63 in the final held in Polish city Katowice.
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Spain's players celebrate after defeating Serbia 85-63 in the final held in Polish city Katowice Sept. 20, 2009.[Xinhua/Reuters Photo] |
Spain's Paul Gasol won the trophy for the best player in the championship, after baskets scored in Poland also made him the highest scoring player. He was also named, alongside teammate Rudy Fernandez as the "dream five" basketball players.
Spain, which lost its first game with Serbia, had a slow start in the European championship. But, beginning with the quarter finals, the team began to show its merits.
Players Riky Rubio, Navarro, Rudy Fernandez, Reyes, Marc Gasol and Raul Lopez, many of whom are under contract for teams in the United States' top league the National Basketball Association, had already won the world championship and a silver medal at the Olympics, the first time Spain has held these two trophies simultaneously.
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Spain's players pose for a photo after winning the final of the European champion held in Polish city Katowice Sept. 20, 2009.[Xinhua/Reuters Photo] |
Sunday's win erases bad memories from 2007, when Spain lost to Russia in the European finals in 2007 in Madrid, because Gasol's bad last-minute basket. The Spanish team has been in second place for six European finals in a row.
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Spain's player Pau Gasol (Back) celebrates with his teammate after winning the final of the European champion held in Polish city Katowice Sept. 20, 2009.[Xinhua/Reuters Photo] |
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Spain's national team celebrate after winning the final of the European champion held in Polish city Katowice Sept. 20, 2009. [Xinhua/Reuters Photo] |
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Spain's player Pau Gasol kisses the medal after the team won the final of the European champion held in Polish city Katowice Sept. 20, 2009.[Xinhua/Reuters Photo] |
(Xinhua News Agency September 21, 2009)
