After winning the European Championship final, national basketball coach Alex Mumbru traveled to Spain, where he was admitted to hospital for further treatment as planned.
This was confirmed by the German Basketball Federation (DBB) in response to a dpa inquiry. After several difficult weeks of poor health, Mumbru did not attend the victory celebrations in Riga or the reception in Frankfurt, as planned.
The coach was admitted to hospital two days before the start of the European Championship preliminary round in Tampere, Finland, and had to stay for five nights due to inflammation of the pancreas.
Mumbru is expected to be head coach again in November
“Health is definitely our top priority. I told him throughout the tournament: do what you can. He wanted to be there, which was not unreasonable – not even from a medical point of view. Our association doctor looked after Alex and monitored him throughout his time in Riga,” association president Ingo Weiss told the German Press Agency.
Mumbru is now scheduled to undergo surgery in Spain. After that, the 46-year-old is expected to recover and return as national coach for the World Cup qualifiers in November.
The coach missed the entire preliminary round due to illness, with his assistant Alan Ibrahimagic taking over. When Mumbru ventured back to the sidelines in the round of 16, the former pro was clearly exhausted. The coach had lost several pounds and looked worn out. After the victory over Portugal, he once again handed over the reins to Ibrahimagic, who led Dennis Schröder’s team to the European Championship title with three more wins.
Team reaction sports director “overwhelmed”
After the triumph in Riga, sports director Peter Radegast spoke about Mumbru’s difficult days in Finland and Latvia. “He was really sick. He himself revealed that it was acute inflammation of the pancreas as a result of gallstones. The pain must have been terrible. He was given strong painkillers at the hospital in Tampere to help him rest,” said Radegast in an interview on the German Olympic Sports Confederation’s website. A few hours after Mumbru handed over responsibility on the sidelines to Ibrahimagic, the team rallied behind the coach and showed their support: “I was overwhelmed by the reaction of the team, which came entirely from the players, after the Spanish media speculated that Alex was no longer head coach,” said Radegast. The team wanted to send a message.
