BASKETBALL IN BULGARIA: WHEN DID THE ORANGE BALL CONQUER US?

It is universally accepted that the year of birth of basketball is 1981. Then college sports teacher James Smith gave birth to the greatest game according to millions on our planet. And with reason. Sooner or later, basketball conquered the whole world and invariably expanded its geography, especially at the beginning of the 20th century. But have you wondered when the game appears in Bulgaria?

The exact answer is debatable. The lack of accurate information and the more modest level of awareness in the first years of the past century make us not fully convinced of the first steps of the game in our country. However, history tells that the birthday of Bulgarian basketball was in 1912. And whether this is the exact year is perhaps not so important. More importantly, a few years later, its practice in the country began to grow. In 1919, the first basketball club appeared, although not an independent one. A basketball team was also established with the then Atlantic organization. It is then that it is accepted by many that the magic of the orange ball officially appeared in Bulgaria. We also make an important clarification that at that time the ball was not orange, but today we all associate this color with attempts to score baskets.

What is relatively unknown about the appearance of basketball in our country is that it is under serious French influence. The first books on the subject have the unexpected titles Women's Basketball and Women's Basketball Rules. This directly emphasizes that this sport in our country was mainly practiced by girls in the years between 1921 and 1923, when the titles in question were issued.

In 1924, Sofia had its first championship. It includes 11 women's and 10 men's teams, which is another proof of the strong women's influence. The same year, other cities followed the example of the capital, such as Rousse, where there was an official competition for juniors. In 1926, the "Basketball Player's Cup" was also played. Two years later we also have an intercity derby. Slavia Sofia and the American College will be on the floor, and the match will be played in Samokov.

In 1943, Bulgarian basketball reached the international level. The team of the Higher School of Physical Education, or today known as the National Sports Academy (NSA), visited Budapest at the local Institute of Physical Culture and won with a somewhat strange nowadays result of 22:11.

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