By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
After 189 games with the Greek national team, Nikos Zisis announced today his retirement.
In a written statement which was released via the Greek basketball federation, the former captain of the national team, winner of a gold medal in Eurobasket 2005, a bronze in Eurobasket 2009 and a silver medal in Mundobasket 2006, confirmed his decision.
“Every good thing has an end and there are moment in life in which we must take difficult decisions. I want to announce my retirement from the National Team. It was a huge honor and a huge pride to play with the national emblem on my chest and to represent my country on the court. Each summer began eagerly with dreams for the big tournaments, a feeling that never changed no matter how many years have passed. In the National Team I felt the greatest of joys and sorrows in my career, it’s the team that I loved more than any other.
I want to thank the federation, my coaches, everyone who worked and most of all my teammates over the years. We lived unforgettable moments on and off the court, which will bind us forever. What matters most is that both during the good and the bad, we were a family and we felt something unique in this group. The feeling of playing for Greece, it’s something that I can not describe with words.
We inherited a great legacy from previous generations and we preserved it on the court and in our heart. I hope and I will be filled with even more pride to see in the future that my generation conveying this sense of responsibility, pride and honor for the national team to those who are coming next. It will be an insurmountable joy to see kids which started to play basketball watching us on television and in the stadium to surpass us and leave behind an even bigger legacy for the team that it’s our beloved.
Nikolaos Zisis”