LOJO TO COACH WITH THE SAME JOY HE DOES WITH HOMELAND

New Great Britain U18 men’s head coach Goran Lojo says he will lead the team with the same pride and honour he did with his own country.

Hailing from Bosnia & Herzegovina, Lojo arrives as the freshest face to the GB coaching set-up. And the veteran playcaller sees the potential in a growing youth programme.

“I like new challenges, and I think the GB national teams programme has a lot of possibility and potential for big improvements and achievements,” Lojo said.

“I’m glad to be part of that growth in the GB youth set-up, and I want it to be a very successful story.”

His first task will be to oversee the youth combine, which will take place in Cardiff on January 2-3, as he prepares for the following summer.

“I want to identify and select what GB has in that age group, try to improve them the best possible way, and get them ready for challenges and follow-up next summer,” Lojo said.

“They will play good and nice basketball, develop them further and prepare for the next step-next age group, and for me, the main goal is to make them play with pride and honour for the GB national team and create a positive environment within the team that will encourage the players always to look forward to getting another invitation.”

As one of the more experienced new faces on the Great Britain youth side, Lojo has enjoyed tremendous success on the international stage, particularly with the Bosnia & Herzegovina women’s side.

Taking over in 2017, he led the Bosnian ladies to FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2021, their first tournament since 1999. He guided them to a fifth-place finish, winning four of their six games.

Among the six victories came big wins over established nations Belgium and Croatia. The Bosnians would fall in the quarter-finals against co-hosts France, but a win over Sweden clinched a place at the FIBA Women’s World Cup Qualifiers.

And true to their form at Women’s EuroBasket, Lojo and his Bosnian side qualified for the premier international event in Australia and were more prosperous for the experience despite finishing 12th.

Since then, Lojo had a spell coaching the Ugandan women’s side before coming to the GB fold.

“Being on the sideline as a national team coach is a special feeling every game,” Lojo said.

“Representing country and nation at the highest level is always honour. I felt really proud of the team, staff, and, in the end, myself, too, for everything we achieved.

“Fifth place at EuroBasket 2021 and qualification and participation at World Cup 2022 were two best-ever results of Bosnia & Herzegovina basketball national teams, and I’m especially proud of that.

“I can promise that I’ll coach GB with the same pride and honour as I coached my homeland national team.”