Thanks to an agreement between the Feddf and RTVE, there will be an exclusive match every day on RTVE Play and Teledeporte. Additionally, RTVE Play will have its own wheelchair basketball section and the “Friday Game” will begin with a championship game every Friday.

The season of this sport had an aperitif last weekend with the Spanish Super Cup, played in Béjar (Salamanca) and won by Ilunion after beating BSR Amiab Albacete in the final by 67-77 and after winning in the last second against Bidaideak Bilbao BSR in the semi-final thanks to a triple from Terry Bywater (83-84). The Bilbao team finished third, defeating Fundación Aliados in the consolation final by 96-44.

The maximum league competition in Spain will last from this Saturday until May 18, 2024 after 22 days and with 12 teams: Amivel Reyes Gutiérrez (Vélez-Málaga), Bidaideak Bilbao BSR, BSR Amiab Albacete, Econy Gran Canaria (Las Palmas de Gran Canaria), the Aliados Foundation (Valladolid), the Iberconsa Amfiv (Vigo), the IMF Getafe BSR, the Ilunion (Madrid), the Menarini Joventut (Badalona), the Mideba Extremadura (Badajoz), the Servigest Burgos and the ‘UCAM Murcia BSR.

BRUSHES FROM CERTAIN CLUBS

The BSR Amiab Albacete, led by Abraham Carrión (also absolute coach of the Spanish men’s team), defends the title obtained in the last two seasons, which are added to that of 2017-18. “The level of all teams is increasing and that means we have to work more every day,” the coach said during the league presentation in Madrid.

Ilunion, current vice-champion of the championship, is also one of the favorites for the title. It is not for nothing that they are the most successful club, with 17 championships to their name, the last of the 2018-19 season. Marta Ceular, assistant coach, stressed that the club aspires to “all possible titles”.

Bidaideak Bilbao BSR, third last season, league champion in 2020-21 and vice-champion in 2017-18, aims to return to the top of the rankings. To do this, she recruited Canadian Patrick Anderson, considered the best wheelchair basketball player in history and who will debut for the first time in the Spanish league.

The Aliados Foundation, fourth in the 2022-23 campaign, aims to “be competitive as soon as possible”, in the words of its president and coach, José Antonio de Castro, who emphasized: “Those of us who belong to the middle class have a problem: when you have a good season, a large part of the squad collapses. Not all the players we signed are here yet and it will be difficult for the team to function from the start.

For their part, Servigest Burgos, with the Italian Matteo Feriani on the bench after training in Australia, Brazil, Canada and Italy, and IMF Getafe BSR return to the Honorary Division with the main aspiration of maintaining the category.

“HIGH LEVEL SPORTS”

During the presentation of the competition, there were several references to the “best league in the world” of wheelchair basketball, made, among others, by Asier García, captain of Bidaideak Bilbao BSR, through a video.

On the other hand, the president of the Feddf, Enrique Álvarez, said that wheelchair basketball has left its “social” side to be “followed more” by the public, to the point that the BSR League can be followed on RTVE. “We are a sport with all its letters and not the adapted version of traditional basketball. “We are a high-level sport and it is the best league in the world, declared the representatives of all the countries with whom we were able to discuss,” he underlined.

The general director of the ONCE Foundation, José Luis Martínez Donoso, recognized that “there is nothing more exciting than wheelchair basketball” and highlighted that the entity he leads donates wheelchairs for sports like basketball, handball, rugby and tennis. “I don’t know if it’s the best league in the world, but it’s no less true that we have the best clubs and the best players,” he said.