Ludwigsburg. Yorman Polas-Bartolo has once again made a long journey behind him. While most of his Ludwigsburg teammates were able to heal their injuries in two weeks without Bundesliga games and work on the fine-tuning with coach John Patrick, the 36-year-old Cuban-German basketball professional jetted across the pond and back again.
While the German national team fought against Estonia and Poland for points for the World Cup qualification, the Cuban national team in Chihuahua, Mexico was faced with a much more tricky and somewhat spicy task: the USA and Puerto Rico were Cuba’s opponents in qualifying for the next World Cup Year 2023 in the Philippines, Indonesia and Japan.
Yorman Polas-Bartolo actually hung up his basketball boots for the international stage almost ten years ago. The winger, who was born in Camagüey, Cuba in 1985, has been playing in German basketball clubs since 2012 and has not played for Cuba anymore.
But now that his home country called him to give up against the USA and Puerto Rico, “El Ciclón” (German: the cyclone) did not hesitate. “Qualifying for the World Cup is something very special and I’ve never lost interest in my national team,” said Polas-Bartolo, explaining his return and adding: “It was always difficult for me because I haven’t been to Cuba for a long time.” This time but he said yes. “I wanted to try again.”
He underlined against the USA that the 1.92 meter tall cyclone, who was awarded several times as the “best defender in the Bundesliga”, is still able to bring his skills to bear against the USA (8 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists). Against Puerto Rico it was even 10 points and 8 rebounds. Although both games were narrowly lost – against the USA 90:95, against Puerto Rico 60:69 – Polas-Bartolo was nevertheless satisfied. “I was able to pass on my experience to the boys. We had the US team on the verge of defeat, ”he says and is convinced that Cuba is not out of the race yet. “The World Cup qualification is quite possible, we have to go back to Mexico (the third group opponent) and Puerto Rico.”
Polas-Bartolo has mixed memories of his early years in Germany, where he went because of love in 2012. “It was a long road for me,” he says, describing the stages: he made his BBL debut in 2014 in Giessen through the regional league team Bayern Munich and Crailsheim. Then he went to Bonn and Frankfurt, before he followed John Patrick’s call to the MHP giants in August 2020.
Polas-Bartolo has also internalized his role as an experienced fixed point with the giants. Young talents like Jacob and Johannes Patrick or Lukas Herzog learn a lot and benefit from the routine of the 36-year-old defensive artist. Polas-Bartolo knows: “When you play under John Patrick, you have to defend well and always be ready. That’s the job. ”“ El Ciclón ”, who holds the BBL’s B coaching license, still leaves his own sporting future open:“ As long as my body plays along, I want to be there. ”
