When the sport basketball ascended to fame and it has become one of the greatest sports in the world, it has also made a great mark in the history of sports in Uruguay.
Even before the emergence of the sport basketball, rugby and football are far more famous than that of basketball in Uruguay. But because basketball game offers a great deal of fun and excitement not only to the basketball players but also to the cheering crowd, it quickly caught an attention to every Uruguayan.
Uruguay is indeed one country in the South America which has a good economic progress. One of its prides is its great performance in terms of sports. One sport that is very popular in Uruguay is Basketball, whereas, the Uruguay National Basketball Team is its representative in the international basketball championships such as the Olympics.
The Uruguayan Basketball Federation really is very proud of the status that the Uruguayan Basketball Team has right now for as far their team is concerned, they are always landing on the top spots in the past championships, not only in their local basketball leagues but also worldwide.
The history of basketball in Uruguay started as they have joined the 1936 Olympics which were held in Berlin, Germany. The team ranked the 6th in the same Olympic year. Being on the top six was already a great achievement for any team to land on those ranks that is why it was a good start for the Uruguay National Basketball Team.
During the 1948 Olympics held in London, the Uruguay National Basketball Team had again garnered a good achievement as they were able to make it on the 5th spot. While on the Summer Olympics in the year 1952, they again ranked as 3rd among any other competitors.
They again had won in Melbourne, Australia in the year 1956 whereas as they were awarded as the top 3. The winning glory of Uruguayan National Team had continued in good terms as they ranked as number 8 in both 1960 Olympics in Rome, Italy and 1964 Olympics in Tokyo, Japan.
However, Uruguay National Basketball Team cannot have the best of both worlds as their team was not able to qualify in the finals during the Olympics in the year 1984 held in Los Angeles, California although they ended upon the 6th spot. This was not bad at all.
Uruguay was also able to win 12 South American Championships and has also joined in many World Championships as well as Pan American Games all throughout the history of Uruguay National Basketball Team. The country was also chosen to host the FIBA World Cup in the year 1967.
The history of Uruguay Basketball is so rich that is why there are a lot of foreign player who are attracted to play for any team in Uruguay whereas the most popular basketball team in Uruguay is the Liga Uruguaya. One thing more, the country Uruguay has always been commended for their greatness in the field of Basketball.
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