Madrid, Sep 14 (EFE) .- To the rhythm of a dance from the popular video social network ‘TikTok’, directed by the base of the City of La Laguna Tenerife Gaby Ocete, the Endesa 2021-22 Women’s League was launched, which presented its new season in an act marked by humor at the Madrid headquarters of the energy company.
The Majorcan base put several representatives of the other clubs in the competition and the hosts of the gala to dance, the former player Juanma Iturriaga, the journalist Siro López and Pablo Lolaso, a humorous tweeter from the Real Madrid coach .
Ocete was, along with the representatives of the other three teams that will play the Super Cup next weekend in Tenerife -the escort of Perfumerías Avenida Maite Cazorla, the power forward of Spar Girona María Araujo and the center of Valencia Basket Raquel Carrera- protagonist as they are the ones in charge of asking the rest of their rivals about their perspectives for the season.
Among the comments of the players, Cazorla highlighted that the League is “increasingly competitive” and this is shown in that there are “players who are returning” to Spanish basketball, while being “super grateful” for having experienced this summer the Eurobasket and the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
“We need to improve the impact,” said Araujo (Girona). “In recent years we have improved a lot but hopefully we can continue to improve so that women’s basketball reaches more people,” he added.
Carrera said that Valencia Basket would like to start the season by winning a title such as the Super Cup, after having released its record last year with the European Championship. “Then we have the Euroleague preview, which makes us very excited to play it,” he added
The biggest applause went to the Casademont Zaragoza player Vega Gimeno, who last Sunday was proclaimed the 3×3 European champion with the Spanish team.
“If I say two sentences in a row I start to cry, there are many years fighting for the 3×3 so that it is up there, which is where it has to be,” said the Valencian, who recalled the “good blow” they took in the Pre-Olympic when they failed to qualify for Tokyo 2020.
The players were also in charge of asking institutional representatives, such as the president of the Spanish Basketball Federation (FEB), Jorge Garbajosa, who emphasized that “every euro invested in women’s basketball is more profitable, because there is much to do “.
María Araujo put him in trouble by asking him if he saw a woman presiding over the FEB. “Are you kicking me out?” Garbajosa joked. “Hopefully, that she is a woman, that she is a prepared woman, of basketball. The time that you are president or director of competitions like Elisa Aguilar, we come to leave our skin. I hope there are more women managing basketball throughout Spain,” he added .
For his part, the General Director of Endesa Communication, Nacho Jiménez, recalled that they have been collaborating with the FEB for ten years and that their experience with the Endesa Women’s League is “fantastic.” “We are absolutely delighted and hope it will be a long and lasting relationship,” he added.
The company executive highlighted the importance of the ‘Basket Girlz’ project, with which girls are encouraged not to give up basketball. “Many girls leave basketball practice before the boys. We wanted to understand what was happening and how to make this stop happening, so that the players did not leave so soon,” he explained.
Subsequently, the director of Competitions of the FEB, the former international player Elisa Aguilar, said that her objective is to “create references” for women’s basketball.
“You are playing in the best league in Europe, that is data, we are in giving visibility, making the best effort so that you can transmit to the young women that they continue with basketball, which is worth it,” emphasized the former player and now executive from FEB.
Also on stage were Gracia Alonso (Kutxabank Araski), Helena Oma (Durán M. Ensino), Vega Gimeno (Casademont Zaragoza), Patricia Cabrera (Baxi Ferrol), Aina Ayuso (Campues Promete), Ariadna Pujol (Cadí La Seu), Laura Méndez (Pajariel Bembibre), Conchi Mongomo (Spar Gran Canaria), Marta Hermida (Innova TSN Leganés), Yurena Díaz (IDK Euskotren), Tinara Moore (Lointek Gernika), and Leslie Knight (Movistar Estudiantes).
The Endesa 2021-22 Women’s League will start on September 25 and 26, after meeting this next weekend the winning team of the Super Cup, which will be played at the Santiago Martín de La Laguna Pavilion (Tenerife).
(c) EFE Agency