Bauermann signs contract to coach Iran basketball team for 4 years

Professional basketball coach Dirk Bauermann has signed a contract to steer national Iranian men’s team for four years, while booking a place in the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games is the first priority for the Persians.

The 57-year-old German finalized an agreement with officials from Basketball Federation of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Tehran on Wednesday afternoon. There was no immediate information available on the terms of Bauermann’s contract with the federation.

Late last month, Bauermann expressed his eagerness to continue his job as the head coach of Iran national basketball team, noting that the Asian side still has the chance to secure a place in the upcoming Olympics.

“We had good performance in 2015 FIBA Asian Championship but as I said before in a 10-day tournament everything could happen. We lost Hamed Afagh in the game against South Korea due to injury, and just after that we suffered another blow, losing Javad Davari against China with the same reason. Losing two key players was a major blow for us, but we tried our best and I’m completely satisfied with my team’s performance,” Bauermann said then.

“I believe minor mistakes would change everything, for example, if you have a poor performance in just one quarter, then a lot of things might be affected. We had that poor one quarter against the Philippines, they were the better team in the second half of the game and we lost our rhythm and at the end they won,” the German basketball coach added. 

He went on to say, “We finished third in FIBA Asian Championship, but I’m sure this team has the potential to book a place in the next year’s Olympics in Rio. My contract with Iran has expired but I’d love to continue my job in Iran because I have very good players, who I really enjoy working with them. It would be an honor for me to continue as the head coach of Iran national basketball team.”

On October 3, Iran claimed the third position at the end of the 2015 FIBA Asia Championship after winning Japan 68-63 in a third-place game staged at the Changsha Social Work College’s gymnasium in the south-central Chinese city of Changsha.

China defeated the Philippines 78–67 in the final match, claiming the gold medal as well as a place in the 2016 Olympic Games.

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