WARSAW, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- American coach Mike Taylor was sacked from Poland men's basketball team after seven years in charge, the Polish Basket Association informed in an official statement released Monday evening.
In 2019 Taylor led the Polish players to the quarter-final of the FIBA World Cup in China. Booking a ticket to the final tournament and then advancing into the knock-out phase was considered as a big surprise and the greatest success of Poland's team since 1963, when they won a bronze medal of the European Championship.
The American sat on Poland's bench in 111 matches. The team will qualify for the European Championship in 2022 under him. However, they will compete in Prague, the Czech Republic without Taylor as the Polish Basket Association informed that the board decided to end the cooperation with the coach.
"He gave all basketball fans in Poland a lot of satisfaction. After the unsuccessful EuroBasket in 2013, the staff needed refreshing and that is what the American ensured. The national team played at the next two European championships, advancing to them in great style. World Cup performances in China will remain unforgettable as we took a sensational eighth place," the chairman of the Polish Basket Association Radoslaw Piesiewicz claimed in the official statement.
"However, we decided that after many years of cooperation, it was time for changes and a new impulse. We thank the coach for his hard work, successes and contribution to the development of basketball in our country," Piesiewicz explained. Enditem
