INVICTUS TOUR 2022, unforgettable! Here is a travelogue perhaps incomprehensible to most, for some just cryptic notes, but not to the protagonists who lived it, our "Oranges" of INVICTUS Academy, filling with genuine joy (and some memorable pearls) two providential minivans, that led us from Bologna to go up to Italy, with destination Slovenia and Croatia ...
Beyond 1.500 km in three days, with an exception driver such as Maurizio Gatti, that after a lifetime of carrying the Champions of Basketball City around Europe, he returned to the guide and was immediately adopted by the "Oranges", thus earning an exclusive contract for future trips, and in turn giving pearls of wisdom that kids will never forget ...
To the Executive-Technical Staff formed by Michele, Ivan e Brench, the latter in the dual role of coach-player, who ended his career on the field in the youth academy in an unparalleled way, the real protagonists have been added: Nicola Monzali (2004), Simone Pedrini, Luca Pilutti, Alessandro Benini, Gianluca Forino e Giuseppe Berardi (2005), James Rocchi (2006), Davide Valdiserri, Gabriele Trentin - from now, for everyone, "Thorn" - e Nicolò Parenti (2007), and finally Alessandro Forino, Cesare Gozza, Jacopo Sozzi e Giulio Stroppa, man-image of the new main sponsor Cedevita!
First stage of the Novo Mesto journey, Slovenia, embracing ... Matjaz Smodis! Who hosted us in the beautiful private center where they train and play his Troti Smodis Basketball School, and after hugs, the chatter, memories, it's time for photos that every guy (and us first!) we wanted to deal with one of the very few who managed to win everything with Virtus and Fortitudo, to then fly to CSKA.
So here are the first two games, with the onset of training INVICTUS MIX 1 (Jack, Owns, Gabri, Nico, But, Caesar, Jaco e Giulio), against Slovenian opponents much taller than us, managing to play evenly and win in the sprint for 51-56 seizing a first success that has loaded our people to a thousand "Oranges"!
Repeated by that of training INVICTUS MIX 2 (Brench, Nick, Simo, Pilu, But, Joseph, Gianlu - still out for the shoulder - Jack, Owns, Gabri e Nico), and this time too there was a formation of both physical and technical caliber that was truly remarkable. but yet, the "Oranges" they managed to reassemble from -10, outmatch, take advantage of 11 to then hold out until victory for 52-60, signing an incredible 2 a 0 in Slovenia.
After a lucullian dinner from Gedzo, on the invaluable advice of Matjaz, we left the same evening for Croatia, reaching Zagreb and to be precise theHotel Raca, who hosted us. With the four 2009 to divide what they called one "suite", as well as the others "Oranges" they split into double rooms, colonizing the entire first floor. But for someone, the kilometers traveled were not yet enough ...
So, When Pilu & But they went down to the hall with an enviable outfit (both in pajamas, notable the boxers with the hamburgers of the first ...), asking them to accompany them in search of a Coke, cure-all for stomach pain, we accompanied them, stopping in a lighted room, to find ourselves decidedly surprising guests of a ... marriage! Congratulations to the newlyweds and received a maxi bottle of Coca Cola, who insisted on offering us, we finally got back to the hotel.
Wake Up, breakfast and all ready in perfect time to go and play the two against KK Bosko Zagreb, discovering that a school gym, beyond "obviously" to the wooden parquet, it can have grandstands and even a Burger Bar upstairs. Before, But, matches against Croatian boys, really impressive for height and accuracy of archery. But the "Oranges" they-came-here-to-play, and once again they surprise for the determination they show!
So, i "little ones" surprise the Croatian giants, reassembling from -11 and conquering overtime, where they win for 65-69 doing the numbers, despite the talents lavished among the opponents, and when it's up to the "great" go to the field, against a team that reached fifth place in the Croatian National Championship, one would almost think that 3 wins 4 are a budget that goes beyond all expectations ...
instead, ours go off like a rocket, going on the run on 11 a 3, and forcing opponents to chase them. They succeed, they surpass them, ma Brench plays his last game since "young" scoring repeatedly from the arc of the three points, the game continues on very high levels of intensity, as well as the speed of play. And at the end, comes a new one, incredible victory, 53-55 for a 4 his 4 that makes us want to ... Stay abroad! In conclusion, Budapest is only 300 km from here, parents will understand ...
Lunch at the Burger Bar, where to the full of cevapcici from the night before we add burgers of gigantic proportions, then we start again. First stop from Grosbasket, shop specializing in basketball, where there is everything that in Italy is not found on the NBA, and in addition the triumphs of Croatian basketball and of the greatest erore are celebrated, Drazen Petrovic, with amazing memorabilia: from international trophies to medals, to his autographed shirts and, really, the report of the Final of the Barcelona Olympics 1992 against Michael Jordan's Dream Team USA, Magic Johnson e Larry Bird!
The hours pass quickly and take us to visit the center of Zagreb, from the Cathedral to the Main Square, plus their via Rizzoli and Indipendenza, completely pedestrianized, more streets full of typical restaurants, where people eat all the time ... In fact, it is now dinner time, and before returning to the hotel the party of whoever he wanted wins "try the Croatian McDonald's"... On cell phones, in the meantime, you watch the last act of the final between Milan and Virtus, obviously among those who cheer for one and the other, to the sound of teasing ...
Back to the hotel, let's celebrate Brench, which from tomorrow will be a "Senior" to facilitate as much as possible the children who live further away from the Pianoro Sport Academy and whose parents could not accompany them in the morning, uncorking a bottle of wine - us big! - given to us by the manager of the restaurant in Novo Mesto. Looking at the boys, they hang out and joke around in the hotel just as they played together and gave everything they had on the pitch, fully deserving the four victories won, we understand that the deepest meaning of the journey has been reached: this means being part of a team, and the difficulties encountered during the year are offset by the satisfactions of these three days.
Sunday morning, breakfast and departure from Zagreb to return to Slovenia and visit Ljubljana. A day "yes tourists", but in reality it is a continuous talk of basketball among the boys, retraces the four games won, but it would still have been a wonderful experience even if the victories hadn't come, and of course keep joking and having fun. There are no matches in Ljubljana today, but there is anyway "a team" who goes around visiting the beautiful city center, characterized by the river and the bridges that cross it.
The boys relax, they are already starting to plan the destinations for the next trip, they form a group without looking at the year of birth. This is the meaning of travel, at the end. We take them on the funicular (that's better) until the Ljubljana Castle, the castle overlooking the city. The view is breathtaking, The sun is hot, but there are benches in the shade and they snap "timeout" with the whole team gathered there. We go down, we stop on the riverside to have lunch, naturally cevapcici just to stay light.
It is already late afternoon, when the time comes to return to the Minivans. But crossing the park from which we entered the center, there are still holiday-tasks to be fulfilled: at least one component per year must make a speech, and beautiful words come out (and laughter of taste, when do we do a Maurizio Gatti). There is also the final scream "INVICTUS", inevitable, before getting on the minivans and leaving. But there will be stops at motorway restaurants and chat after chat, to make the hours and km pass quickly.
Upon arrival in Bologna, there is no way that kids stop being together. Another good half hour will pass, before the greetings. With the promise of this report, like those videos that some guys have already started making ... The journey is not over, indeed from a certain point of view, it has just begun.
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