Streetball in Croatia
Basketball is a national sport in Croatia, which gave birth to numerous NBA players like Dražen Petrović, Toni Kukoč, Krešimir Ćosić, Gordan Giriček, Žan Tabak and many others. While most of these players derive from the famous clubs in Zagreb and Split, the heart of the country’s streetball scene lies in the rather small city of Lipik. This is even more surprising if you take into consideration that the city’s infrastructure was burned down and destroyed in the Yugoslav wars in 1991. The tournament is organized by a local youth association, a generation from whom the war has taken a major part of their childhood.
The annual streetball tournament at the basketball court at Lipik Orphanage exists since 1999 and has grown over the years to one of the most popular streetball events in Croatia. While being regional at the beginning, its popularity and importance has increased year by year. In 2007, the Final Croatian Championship for Young Players were carried out, and in 2009, the Final Croatian Championship Masters will take place in Lipik – being the highest step in Croatian streetball.
Lipik is also well known for its night tournament, already hosting international teams from Zimbabwe, Germany and United Kingdom. The games are accompanied by concerts, fireworks and dancers, making the tournament a truly entertaining event. Also, basketball videos and documentaries are shown on a huge video-wall.
This year’s tournament will take place on August 17-22. It’s a night tournament and is divided into amateur and professional groups, as well as special groups for girls and young players. For more information, please check out: http://www.streetballipik.org/
One of the reasons that make Lipik Streetball a special event is the fact that the tournament is dedicated to the memory of Dražen Petrović (with the permission of his family). Petrović, who died in a car accident in 1993, played for Cibona, Real Madrid, Portland and New Jersey, and is considered as one of the best European basketball players of all times.