Kostas Politis, the legendary Greek coach who led the national basketball team to gold medal at the EuroBasket 1987, died on Monday at his home in Athens from deteriorating health.
Politis will always be remembered as the man who lifted the trophy along with Nikos Galis, Panagiotis Giannakis, Panagiotis Fassoulas, Fanis Christodoulou and Memos Ioannou — men who became household names to most Greeks, with their posters decorating many teenagers’ rooms.
Politis became coach of the national side in 1982 and led Greece to 10th place at the World Cup in Spain in 1986. It was the best showing for the Greeks at an international level.
He made history in 1987 when Greece lifted the Eurobasket trophy in Athens sparking scenes of wild jubilation across the country.The historic win marked the beginning of the rise of Greek basketball, on a club and national level.
He also coached at the club level at Panathinaikos (twice), PAOK and AEK.
He led Panathinaikos to three Greek Championships (1979-80, 1980-81 and 1981-82) and two Greek Cups (1978-79, 1981-82). On a European level, he led Panathinaikos to third place at the Final Four in Tel Aviv in the 1993-94 season.
