In the world of big sport there is a well-established opinion that successful athletes rarely achieve major successes in the coaching field. Rare exceptions only confirm this rule. Often, it is very difficult for them to transition from an existing athlete to a mentor, coach. At a certain stage, it becomes not so important whether you know how to do it yourself. The ability to explain to their players, to convey their knowledge in an accessible form comes to the fore. A successful trainer simply must be a good psychologist. It is the mentor who is responsible for creating the microclimate within the team, he is fully responsible for the psychological state of the players entrusted to him. That is, a good coach is the optimal combination of a sports specialist and a psychologist, it can make it possible to achieve success in this field. These words are perfectly suited to the Italian specialist, basketball coach Ettore Messina.
Childhood
Ettore Messina was born on the Apennine Peninsula, in the Italian city of Catania. It happened on September 30, 1959. Like any Italian boy, the main childhood hobby was football. In parallel with this sport, Ettore attended basketball training at a sports school in the city of Catania. Already in his youth, the guy realized that he could not succeed in sports as an acting player. And at a fairly young age, Ettore Messina decides to connect his life with sports as a coach.
First teams
As mentioned above, despite his young age, Messina was able to impress people as a serious person who could be trusted with a team. Ettore was barely 17 years old when the leaders of the Venice basketball club entrusted Messina to lead the youth team. It was a rather risky step - Ettore led the players as a coach, who in most cases were his peers. It was a kind of test for professional suitability. He needed to be able to put himself in such a way that yesterday's teammates could see in him not just a comrade, but a coach.
Ettore Messina passed this test successfully. After working in “Venice” for three full-fledged seasons, in 1979 he received an invitation to lead the youth squad “Suprega Mestre”. This basketball club was highly rated in the Italian rankings, one of the leading in Italy. It was with this that BC Messina made a loud statement about herself, having won with him five titles of the strongest Italian team in her age group.
Adult teams
Success at a youthful level did not go unnoticed by basketball specialists. In 1982, there was an invitation to work as the second coach in the Udinese team from the city of the same name. A year later, Messina was invited to his basketball club "Kinder", part of the Italian elite. After working for “Kinder” for several years as a second coach, in 1989 Ettore led him already as head coach.
Coaching Success
The first resounding success with the Kinder Club came to Messina in 1992. The team led by Messina won the Italian championship, which at that time was considered one of the strongest in Europe. Such success in the domestic arena made the officials of the Italian Basketball Federation pay attention to Messina when choosing a coach for the national team. The Italian national basketball team for Messina became home for four years. During this time, in their arsenal are the “silver” of the Goodwill Games-94 and the “silver” of the 1997 European Championship. Messina also won the Italian national team at the 1993 Mediterranean Games.
After experience working with the national team, basketball coach E. Messina returns to Kinder. This event becomes a triumph - already in the first season the club wins the Italian championship and the most prestigious European club trophy - the Euroleague. After three seasons, Messina was able to repeat this success.
Contract with CSKA
In 2005, the growing strength of the army team turned its attention to a promising Italian coach. The agreement was signed for three years. Under the Italian coach, the leadership of the army club conducted a large-scale transfer campaign, acquiring iconic basketball players such as Langdon, Smodis, Vanterpool. The main task for the season, formulated by the leadership of CSKA, is a victory in the Euroleague. The group stage of the army club was not very confident, affected a large number of newcomers. But for the games of the final four, CSKA scored the optimal form and won the most prestigious trophy, defeating the Israeli “Maccabi” in the final. The successful work of Ettore Messina did not go unnoticed by experts. At the end of the season, he received a prize as the best European coach.
The next season was less successful for the army club. CSKA stopped a step from victory in the Euroleague, losing in the final match to the owners of the parquet, the Greek “Panathinaikos”. However, a year later the revenge took place, and the army club regained the title of the strongest club in Europe.
Season 2008-2009 became for Messina the last of those held in CSKA. And again, having easily won all the competitions in the domestic arena, the Ettore team stopped a step away from winning the Euroleague. At this time, the army club could not defeat in the final fight of his long-time offender, the Greek “Panathinaikos”.
Continuation of the coaching career
After such a successful performance with CSKA Moscow Ettore Messina as a coach, he was in demand in leading European clubs. Having opted for the Spanish grande Real Madrid, Messina worked for this club for two seasons. However, Ettore was not able to achieve success comparable to the Moscow period of his career at the Madrid club. This was followed by a trip overseas, where Messina tried his hand at the world's strongest basketball league - the NBA. There he acted as an assistant coach at the Los Angeles Lakers. Then came a return to the Moscow club, which this time was not so triumphant. The team led by Messina twice reached the final of four and both times stumbled at the semi-final stage.
At present, Ettore is headed by BC San Antonio Spurs, whose main task is to successfully qualify for the 2016 Olympic Games.