Due to a later arrival, Spain is not able to regularly practice in Lille. As such, the Spanish Basketball Federation is considering doing it in a nearby town in Belgium.
The Spanish national team played its last friendly game before the 2024 Paris Olympic Games on Tuesday. Heading to the Olympics, Spain has one serious problem - there is no place for them to practice in Lille.
Australia
Spain
GreeceSpain's head coach, Sergio Scariolo, revealed that the team will not be able to practice in the usual way in France before the opening match on Saturday, July 27th.
"I don't know what caused the problems with practices. I'd like to know, but the reality of Thursday and Friday is really very worrying. At this moment, we do not have the possibility of properly training the two days before the first game of the Olympics," Scariolo said after the match.
"I hope there is room for all this to be resolved, but at this moment, we are very concerned," the veteran specialist said. "The federation has no responsibility in this. They've looked for an alternative option, but it's very complicated."
The local organizing institution had put Spain's arrival at July 23rd and assembled the practice schedule and venues according to it. The problem is that Spain arrives later than other teams, Marca reports.
In the current situation, the Spanish national team is even considering practicing outside of France in order to disrupt the players' rhythm as little as possible. Marca notes that the Spanish Federation already has singled out a gym on the other side of France's border with Belgium, where the national team could possibly practice.
"It's going to be very difficult for us to be able to practice in an acceptable way in Lille. We are very concerned because the situation of the training on the day of arrival and the next forces us to possibly even have to leave France to train," Scariolo said. "It seems absurd, but it is the reality at the moment, the best scenario."
Lille is located near France's border with Belgium, with the closest Belgian city being around 20 kilometers away.
Spain's first game at the Paris Olympics comes on Saturday, July 27th, against Australia.
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