Sure, the players of Team Spain have been feted for their 2011 EuroBasket championship, but wasn’t that nation kind of … well … *expecting* to be holding those victory parades? On the other hand, there was tournament shocker FYR Macedonia, who received a hero’s welcome in Skopje yesterday for achieving the seemingly impossible again and again in the tourney. The team eventually placed fourth, thereby gaining a spot in the 2012 Olympics Qualifying Tournament.
To show their appreciation, over 5,000 fans greeted the dozen basketballers at Alexander the Great Airport in the capital of FYR Macedonia – not at all bad for a workday in a city of under 670,000 – and many more lined the streets of Skopje to show gratitude for their underdogs. Noted the Macedonia-based MicNews: “The joy of the nation is worth more than a medal. The uniting power of victory is amazing. We returned with a trophy after all.”
(Impressive) video of the celebration runs below.
