Alexander Gomelsky
Alexander Yakovlevich Gomelsky (; 18 January 1928 – 16 August 2005) was a Russian professional basketball player and coach. The Father of Soviet and Russian basketball, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995 and the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2007. Alexander Gomelsky was awarded the Olympic Order by the International Olympic Committee in 1998. In 2008, he was named one of the 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors. Club coaching career Gomelsky began his coaching career in 1949, in Leningrad, with the women's team of LGS Spartak. In 1953, he became the coach of Rīgas ASK, leading the team to three Soviet Union League titles (1955, 1957, 1958), and three consecutive European Champions Cups (EuroLeague), from 1958 to 1960. In 1969, he was appointed the head coach of CSKA Moscow, leading the club to 10 Soviet Union national league championships (1970–1974, 1976–1980), 2 Soviet Union Cups (1972, 1973), and one European Champions Cup (EuroLeague) title in 1971. He also led the club to two more European Champions Cup (EuroLeague) finals, in 1970, and 1973. He also coached in Spain and France shortly before the dissolution of the USSR. National team coaching career Gomelsky was the long-time head coach of the senior Soviet Union national team, leading them to 6 EuroBasket titles (1963, 1965, 1967, 1969, 1979, and 1981), 2 FIBA World Cup titles (1967, and 1982), and the Summer Olympic Games gold medal in 1988. The Soviet team, with Vladimir Kondrashin as their coach, won their first Olympic gold medal that year, after a controversial game against the United States. Individual awards For merits in the development of sports and basketball was awarded: Honored Coach of the USSR: 1956 Master of Sports of the USSR International Class: 1965 4× Soviet Union Coach of the Year: 1967, 1977, 1982, 1988 Honored Coach of the Lithuanian SSR: 1982 Order of the Red Banner of Labour: 1982 Order of the Red Star Order of Friendship of Peoples 2 Orders of the Badge of Honour Honored Worker of Physical Culture of Russia: 1993 Silver Olympic Order: 1998 FIBA EuroStar: 1998 Order of Merit (Ukraine): 2003 Career achievements Club competitions EuroLeague: 4 (Rīgas ASK: 1958, 1959, 1960 & CSKA Moscow: 1971) Soviet League: 13 (Rīgas ASK: 1955, 1957, 1958 & CSKA Moscow: 1970–1974, 1976–1980) Soviet Cup: 2 (CSKA Moscow: 1972, 1973) National team competitions 1963 FIBA World Championship: EuroBasket 1963: 1964 Summer Olympics: EuroBasket 1965: 1967 FIBA World Championship: EuroBasket 1967: 1968 Summer Olympics: EuroBasket 1969: 1970 FIBA World Championship: EuroBasket 1977: 1978 FIBA World Championship: EuroBasket 1979: 1980 Summer Olympics: EuroBasket 1981: 1982 FIBA World Championship: EuroBasket 1983: EuroBasket 1987: 1988 Summer Olympics: Post coaching career In his later years, Gomelsky was the president of the Russian Basketball Federation and CSKA Moscow. In 1995, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. In 2007, he was enshrined into the FIBA Hall of Fame. In 2008, he was named one of the 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors. The