Brazilian basketball says goodbye, this Thursday, to one of its greatest icons. Coach Cláudio Mortari died at the age of 77. The cause of death was not disclosed, but Mortari had been in poor health in recent years.
A former basketball player, Mortari ended his career at the age of 25. He dedicated himself to his coaching career, during which he completed several successful jobs for major clubs in the country.
He was five-time Brazilian champion: once with Palmeiras (1977), three with Sírio-SP (1978, 1979 and 1983) and one more with Rio Claro (1995). He also won the South American Championship three times with Sírio (1978, 1979 and 1984) and once in the Liga das Américas, with Pinheiros, in 2013.
His main title was with Sírio: the 1979 Interclub World Cup, a competition played in Brazil. On that occasion, his team beat Bosna-IUG, Emerson Varese-ITA, Piratas de Quebradillas-POR and Mo-Kan All-Stars-USA.
The coach also led the Brazilian team at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games, in a team that included names like Oscar, Marcel and Rolando Ferreira. On that occasion, he took the team to the quarterfinals.
His last job was at São Paulo, in 2021. He led the tricolor to the Campeonato Paulista title, one of his several state achievements.
“Mortari was a great idol in our history. A coach of incredible tactical quality, a champion. But, as a person, even better. A gentleman, a teacher. With an incredible education and friendship. The world loses too much without Cláudio Mortari. Basketball loses a character and idol and we lose a friend. A kiss to the family, to the children. The man goes, the legend remains. Rest in peace and the risk for everything he did here”, commented Marcelo Sousa, president of the CBB, in a statement.
