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| Euroleague Basketball thanks local institutions |
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The most crucial weekend of the season culminated on Sunday when CSKA Moscow lifted the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague trophy against Anadolu Efes Istanbul at Fernando Buesa Arena. Besides the final result, all fans have enjoyed an amazing Final Four in Vitoria-Gasteiz, the basketball capital of the Basque Country, with a long list of activities in which thousands of them participated.
Thanks to the outstanding collaboration of the local institutions – the Alava Provincial Government, the Municipality of Vitoria-Gasteiz, the Basque Government and, of course, host club Saski Baskonia – the Final Four has achieved enormous success. Not only the thousands of fans coming from abroad, but also the local citizens of the Basque Country have enjoyed the event intensely. The hospitality of those same citizens from Vitoria-Gasteiz and the rest of the Basque Country went a long way toward making every visitor feel welcome at the Final Four.
"We would like to thank the Alava Provincial Government, the Municipality of Vitoria-Gasteiz, the Basque Government and Saski Baskonia for their support before and during the Final Four. They have been integral to organizing an event of the magnitude of the Final Four, which showed the importance of the Basque Country to the whole world," Mr. Jordi Bertomeu, Euroleague Basketball President and CEO, stated. "Since day one, we have all worked in parallel towards a common goal – to bring the best Final Four possible to all the fans – and I feel very proud of the event we have delivered."
The Final Four started on Thursday, May 16, with the Opening Press Conference at the municipal square, where coaches and players presented the event to hundreds of journalists and fans. That was followed by the first games of the Adidas Next Generation Tournament played at Mendizorrotza Arena. Friday was the most attractive day for the fans, as the FanZone opened its doors. Later that day, the semifinals saw Anadolu Efes Istanbul and CSKA Moscow sealing their tickets for the championship game.
On Saturday, besides the aforementioned Adidas Next Generation Tournament and the FanZone – which was visited by the true protagonists, the players – the best performers of the season were awarded at the 2018-19 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Awards Ceremony, where the Top Scorer, Best Defender, Rising Star and All- EuroLeague First Team were celebrated, while the name of the season MVP, Jan Vesely, was unveiled.
Sunday started with the championship game of the Adidas Next Generation Tournament, which crowned Real Madrid as the best junior team on the continent for the second time. Fans continued celebrating at the Fan Zone while waiting for the two games that would close the season. In those, Real Madrid beat Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul to take third place for the season before CSKA Moscow defeated Anadolu Efes Istanbul 83-91 to become Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champion for the fourth time this century.
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