Image: GEPA / Christian Moser
Champions, cup winners and Supercup winners – the OCS Swans Gmunden basketball players won everything there was to win in the previous season. A season for eternity. On Sunday (4 p.m., Raiffeisen-Sportpark) the start of the new season will take place with the duel between the triple champions and their arch-rivals of recent years, BC Vienna. Local rivals Raiffeisen Flyers Wels also want to have an even bigger say in the title.
New options: The Swans were unable to keep their tried and tested quartet of legionnaires around the most valuable league player of the previous season, Urald King. But they were able to retain the tried and tested Austrian trio around Daniel Friedrich, Benedikt Güttl and Toni Blazan as well as successful coach Anton Mirolybov. With the Icelandic rough diamond Orri Gunnarsson, the new center Trey Moses, who already gained experience in Spain and Australia, and the Canadian Patrick Emilien, you have new options, especially under the basket. “The decisive factor will be how quickly we grow together,” says CFO Harald Stelzer.
New hopes: In a bitterly fought semi-final series, the Swans were brought to the brink of defeat at 2-3. Wels now wants to take the next step. “Alongside Gmunden, Vienna and Oberwart, we also count ourselves among the favorites,” says national player Renato Poljak, who, along with Chris Ferguson, is the trade fair city’s most high-profile newcomer.
New money: The women’s super league will start in mid-October, and the Askö women’s basketball performance center was the only Upper Austria representative to also give the green light for it after budget problems. With the company OCS, the same sponsor was won that has been inspiring the Gmundner Swans since last year.
New ball: In the domestic league, the same ball will be played as in the North American professional league NBA for at least the next four years. The change of supplier from Spalding to Wilson was well received by the professionals. “I’m very happy with the ball, it feels really good,” says Swans captain Friedrich.
The start of the Superliga
- 1 round
Men: Saturday, 5.30 p.m.: Oberwart – Eisenstadt
Sunday, 4 p.m.: OCS Swans Gmunden – Vienna (Supercup, live ORF Sport+), St. Pölten – Kapfenberg; 5.30 p.m.: Raiffeisen Flyers Wels – Klosterneuburg, Traiskirchen – Fürstenfeld
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I am Pierce Boyd, a driven and ambitious professional working in the news industry. I have been writing for 24 Hours Worlds for over five years, specializing in sports section coverage. During my tenure at the publication, I have built an impressive portfolio of articles that has earned me a reputation as an experienced journalist and content creator.
