A Lay-up Taste for the European Championships

Germany’s national wheelchair basketball team wants to come out on top during the European Championships in Wetzlar at the end of august. Through the event it wishes more acknowledgment for the sport. There was a foretaste of the EC at the International wheelchair basketball tournament in Osnabruck during Pentecost.

15/06/2007

A whistle, a ball and two hands shoot up. The powerful player in the white jersey catches the ball – Germany is in possession and proceeds to its first offensive play. The opponent in the red jersey is the odds-on favourite, they come from Great Britain. The German national squad dauntlessly tackles the opening game of the international wheelchair basketball tournament. From Germany’s point of view, the score is 16:18 after the first quarter.

So close, even though Frits Wiegmann has sent a modified team on the court. The national coach takes the opportunity to test various players prior to the big run-out at the EC, which takes place from august 23 to September 2, 2007.

He must not forget one thing: the total score of his playing squad. Compared to classic basketball, wheelchair basketball slightly differs in the rules; however, one has to consider the classification system. According to the latter, the team’s starting five players are only allowed to compose a total sum of fourteen points. Players are categorised by the degree of their disability: the player counts one point when being severely disabled like a paraplegic. From there, the classification continues in 0.5 steps up to a maximum of 4.5 points for minimal disabilities.

After the first quarter, Germany’s team returns with 14 points on the court. The game moves on in an exciting way. The red side loses the ball and the German team counterattacks rapidly. The referee intervenes: whistle and the end of the attack because a German made a “travelling“ error. Wheelchair basketball does not have the double dribble violation, but “travelling“ in return.

A player is allowed to touch his wheels not more than twice after receiving or dribbling the ball, otherwise he commits a “travelling” error. Never mind, the game proceeds. Quickly and effectively both sides organise their offensive game. Thanks to robust wheelchairs, Germany ties the game at halftime. With them, two German players blocked their opponent last-minute, the Briton lost possession of the ball and Germany was able to even up the score to 30:30.

In order for rolling sports vehicles to sustain such attacks, they need to be produced specifically. In contrast to everyday wheelchairs, the sport variant is strongly welded and the wheels are not perpendicular to the ground but attached aslantly, so the players can manoeuvre faster and do not dump so quickly.

The wheelchairs are customised individually according to the disability of the specific player. Severely disabled sit lower in the chair, as it is more solid and depending on their physique, the device varies in its width.

After halftime, the game continues in the small gymnasium of Osnabruck. Around a hundred spectators sit on the stands, the journalists – closer to the events because of sitting directly behind the hoop – follow how the Britons gradually have trouble to prevent the German game. The home national team succeeds with its tactics: a mixture of tall players who are hard to block and smaller, faster ones, who direct the offensive play as they can consistently passed to.

Tactics differentiate from country to country, thus the European neighbour Italy plays with tall people; the USA place emphasis on players, who are faster and more agile in their wheelchair.

After the third quarter, the German national team leads with four points, 54:50. The match gets hectic. After a Briton falls off the wheelchair and the referees let play on, the players in the red jerseys protest. Towards the end, more and more fouls are committed on German players and this is strategy: the clock is stopped after a foul and the fouled player obtains free-throws. To gain the same amount of points as during the game, he needs to score two of them though.

The British team adroitly tries to shorten the gap and to gain more time for its own offence. Anything but daintily the game is taking its course. Not only the physical contact is intensive in wheelchair basketball, also the teamwork is very important. Anyone who wants to go “One-on-One” has lost.

It is too difficult to drive around the opponent with the wheelchair. One has to train for it. Up to ten hours a week the basketball players train besides full-time work or university. Additionally, many away games with longer travels and meetings with the national team. Despite, one cannot compare this to countries like Australia, Italy or Turkey. There the teams practise professionally more than once a day.

Frits Wiegmann awaits the EC on home ground with optimism: “Our chances are quite good because we play at home. However, the difference of performances between the eight best teams is rather small.” Italy is the big favourite according to Wiegmann and his players and despite them meeting the players of this country in the first round, the set goal of the German team is to reach the semi-final.

A placement under the last four signifies the participation at the 2008 Paralympics in Peking to compete with the best wheelchair basketball teams from Canada, the USA and Australia in one year.

The German squad will not be named until July. The spots are sought-after among the wheelchair basketball players. Famous people from politics, media and sports announced their coming, among them Germany’s basketball idol Dirk Nowitzki, his coach from the national team Dirk Bauermann, but also Federal President Horst Köhler and Federal Minister of Interior Wolfgang Schaeuble.

All involved persons hope for a big response from the public because “wheelchair basketball is still rare in Germany. We are very happy about any sponsoring and the interest in our sport”, says Wiegmann.

Silence, the hoop and many spell bounded glances. There is exactly one second remaining in the game and the score is 70:70. Lars Lehmann aims, draws a deep breath, throws. And scores. The opening game against Great Britain is decided by a free-throw. The spectators and the German substitute’s bench cheer. 71:70. The victory bolsters and it means the first milestone on the way to successful European Championships.

REHACARE.de