Antonio Díaz-Miguel

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Basketball player
Antonio Díaz-Miguel
Antonio Díaz Miguel.jpg
Player information
Full name Antonio Díaz-Miguel Sanz
birthday July 6, 1933
place of birth Alcazar de San Juan , Spain
date of death February 21, 2000
Place of death Madrid , Spain
size 186 cm
position center
Clubs as active
1950–1952 CB Estudiantes 1953–1958 CB Estudiantes 1958–1961 Real Madrid 1961–1963 Club Águilas de Bilbao Spain 1945Spain
Spain 1945Spain
Spain 1945Spain
Spain 1945Spain
National team
1952-1959 Spain 26th
Clubs as coaches
1963–1966 Club Águilas de Bilbao 1993–1994 Pallacanestro Cantù 1996–1997 Pool Getafe (women) Spain 1945Spain
ItalyItaly
SpainSpain
National team as coach
1965-1992 SpainSpainSpain

Antonio Díaz-Miguel Sanz (born July 6, 1933 in Alcázar de San Juan , Spain , † February 21, 2000 in Madrid ) was a Spanish basketball player and coach. He gained notoriety in particular for his work as a coach of the Spanish national basketball team , a position he held for 27 years. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1997 and the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2007 for his exceptional performance in the service of basketball .

career

player

Antonio Díaz-Miguel began playing basketball during his school years at the Madrid Instituto Ramiro de Maeztu and was involved in the founding of the CB Estudiantes club , from 1950 to 1958 he was active in the first team. In 1958 he moved to local rivals Real Madrid with whom he was able to win the double of the championship and the cup in the seasons 1959/60 and 1960/61 . For the 1961/62 season Antonio Díaz-Miguel moved to Bilbao and played for the local club Club Águilas de Bilbao while he was studying engineering . In 1963 he ended his active career and moved to the coaching bench.

National team

Between 1952 and 1959 Antonio Díaz-Miguel played 26 games for the Spanish national team . With his country he won the gold medal at the Mediterranean Games in Barcelona in 1955 and silver in Beirut in 1959 .

Trainer

Antonio Díaz-Miguel moved to the coaching bench at Club Águilas de Bilbao in 1963. After two seasons he took over the post of head coach of the Spanish national team on the recommendation of the famous basketball official Raimundo Saporta . The national selection, which, despite the growing popularity of basketball in the country, could only celebrate successes at the Mediterranean Games since the silver medal at the first European championship in 1935 , was to gradually shape Díaz-Miguel into a fixture in international basketball. In 1968 he qualified the team for the second time for the Olympic Games , a tournament that could be finished in 7th place. The first major success was to come at the 1973 European Championship . The team reached the semifinals, where they sensationally prevailed against the USSR with 80:76 , the team of the Soviet Union had won eight European championships in a row and was undefeated in continental finals since 1969. In the final, however, the Spaniards failed with 78:67 in the selection of Yugoslavia led by Krešimir Ćosić and Dražen Dalipagić . Wayne Brabender , who was elected MVP of the tournament, and Francesc Buscató , who played his last tournament for Spain, were particularly impressive for the Iberians . The silver medal was the second in history, but the first podium finish in 38 years. At the 1974 World Cup , the Spaniards achieved their best result to date with fifth place.

The most successful era under coach Díaz-Miguel was to begin in the 1980s. Led by players like Fernando Martín , Juan Antonio San Epifanio called "Epi", Fernando Romay , Andrés Jiménez , Iturriaga or Juan Antonio Corbalán , the Spaniards contested a strong tournament at the 1982 World Cup , sensationally defeating the team led by Doc Rivers in the group stage USA with 109: 99 and finally reached the final round, where the Iberians failed in the game for third place with 117: 119 to Yugoslavia. The Spaniards also continued their run of success at the 1983 European Championship , defeating Yugoslavia in the group stage and thus reaching the semi-finals, where the Iberians won 95:94 against the USSR. In the final, the national team failed with 96-105 to Italy , with Dino Meneghin , Pierluigi Marzorati and Antonello Riva in their ranks. Juan Antonio Corbalán was named MVP of the tournament for his excellence and Juan Antonio San Epifanio was part of the All-Tournament Team.

The greatest success under coach Díaz-Miguel was to follow at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles . After the Spanish selection had defeated the favored Yugoslavia in the semifinals , with stars like Dražen Petrović or Dražen Dalipagić in their ranks, 74:61, in the final they faced the US home team, which at the time was almost unbeatable, with players like Patrick Ewing , Michael Jordan , Chris Mullin , Alvin Robertson or Sam Perkins . The hosts won the final 96:65, but the Spanish silver medal at such an important tournament sparked a basketball euphoria in the country.

However, these successes were followed by a sporting descent. Although the Spaniards achieved the bronze medal at the 1991 European Championship and thus their fourth podium placement under coach Díaz-Miguel, one of the biggest disappointments for the national basketball teams followed in 1992 at the Olympic Games in their own country. Despite the home advantage, the team was eliminated from the group bottom in the preliminary round, could only record a narrow win against Brazil and lost all other matches. What is particularly memorable is an embarrassing 63:83 in the penultimate group game against the clear outsider Angola . Ultimately, they only reached ninth place and national coach Antonio Díaz-Miguel announced his resignation after 27 years in office.

During his time as head coach of the Spaniards, Antonio Díaz-Miguel set numerous international records; he remained in office for 27 years, led his team in 431 international games and took part in six Olympic tournaments ( 1968 , 1972 , 1980 , 1984 , 1988 , 1992 ). In addition, he played four world championship and 13 European championship finals as the coach of Spain's national team.

After his time as national coach, he worked from 1993 to 1994 as a coach for the traditional Italian club Pallacanestro Cantù . In the 1996/97 season he coached the women's pool Getafe team and led them to double championship and cup wins , after which he ended his career.

Antonio Díaz-Miguel, who traveled frequently to the United States during his active time , participated in numerous conferences on the development and spread of the sport of basketball and maintained a friendly relationship with greats such as Bobby Knight , Dean Smith , John Wooden and Lou Carnesecca , was named in 1997 for his Achievement in the service of the sport became the first Spaniard to be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame .

He died on February 21, 2000 in Madrid as a result of cancer . In 2007 he was posthumously inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame as one of the first trainers .

Achievements and honors

player

real Madrid

Spanish national team

Trainer

Spanish national team

Getafe pool

Honors

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Muere en Madrid Antonio Díaz Miguel. In: El País . February 22, 2000, Retrieved May 16, 2013 (Spanish).
  2. ↑ SELECCIONADORES: Díaz Miguel, casi 27 años de referencia. In: FEB . February 18, 2012, Retrieved May 16, 2013 (Spanish).
  3. ↑ Bobby Knight: “Díaz Miguel fue el mejor entrenador no estadounidense de su tiempo”. In: FEB . April 20, 2009, Retrieved May 16, 2013 (Spanish).
  4. ^ Antonio Díaz-Miguel. In: http://manchegosilustres.wikispaces.com . Retrieved May 16, 2013 (Spanish).
personal data
SURNAME Díaz-Miguel, Antonio
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Díaz-Miguel Sanz, Antonio (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Spanish basketball player and coach
DATE OF BIRTH July 6, 1933
PLACE OF BIRTH Alcazar de San Juan , Spain
DATE OF DEATH February 21, 2000
Place of death Madrid , Spain