• Chronicle: Spain no longer doubts: it will fight for the medals after defeating Poland
  • Graphic: Who will hang the gold at the World Cup in China? How will Spain end?
  • Record: Rick Rubio, top assistant in the history of the World Cups
  • Opinion: Defense and solidarity, the keys to growth in Spain

The World of the absurd, of the convoluted things, the endless journeys, of the patience, the traffic jams, the difficulties of connection and a myriad of nonsense episodes, has had in the previous one of Tuesday, of the quarterfinals of Spain against Poland, His nth episode. And this time it was the journalists who suffered it, the special envoys of EL MUNDO, Marca and As. The reason, none. Because that was the most incredible of all: nobody knew what was happening so that we could not access the Oriental Sports Center in Shanghai.

Not even FIBA ​​itself, present in the unpleasant retention without being able to do anything, as if it were hitting its head against the wall. The FIBA, the tournament organizer. It all started three hours before the meeting, which the press already knows from experience that in China you have to turn to everything in time. Just in case. At the time of the upgrade (update of the accreditation) for the change of venue, the third one of the tournament - there is still another, because on Friday Spain plays in Beijing, before it did in Guangzhou and Wuhan, eight games, 16 days , four locations-, none of the three journalists appeared on the list of admitted, yes the rest. To find us we had to go to another one under the title: "Temporary Upgrade Card". Bad business

After complaints, problems. The passport requirement, the photo of rigor. Bureaucracy. Why? There's no answer. As in all afternoon. The FIBA ​​Communication Director himself, the Greek Sakis Kontos, appeared in the building attached to the pavilion where the events took place. He put everything on his part to solve the mess, although what was said, the reason was unknown. It was the Chinese police who did not admit journalists . The reason?...

Retained in the FIBA ​​work room and without any member of the Spanish Federation itself being present at the place (although they knew the problem) , journalists waited, without answers, barely without promises of solution, accumulating tensions as the game time A quarter of an hour before, a small breakthrough. "Put your names on this paper." Five minutes before, go ahead. The reason? Well that, none. It had been three hours. A shame.

Without the approved credential, with a couple of people from the organization as a safe-conduct, the three of us agreed to the Arena when Spain was already fighting for the semifinals against Poland.

At the moment there were no apologies or clarifications. Nor the famous upgrade . It is China, its rules, its vetoes, its bureaucracy. And it is the FIBA ​​that, despite the efforts, was the one that agreed to organize its World Cup, its biggest showcase, in a country with such a lack of freedom . An episode to forget. Luckily, Scariolo's never fail.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

Know more

  • sports
  • basketball
  • Basketball World Cup 2019
  • Spanish Basketball Team

Basketball World Cup 2019 Marc Gasol: "Worried about why? Learning to suffer is fine"

Basketball World Cup 2019 Spain flirts with the horror against Iran

World Cup 2019 Hernagómez time: "The alarm is ringing for them"