Jorge Yuyo Ginóbili, father of Manu and basketball personality of Bahía Blanca, has died

Jorge Ettore Ginobilithe dad of Emmanuel Ginobili, died this Friday in Bahía Blanca at the age of 81. Remembered for being one of the main promoters of basketball in the southern city of the province of Buenos Aires, Yuyo He was a point of reference of the sport in the Bahiense del Norte club.

Yuyo Ginóbili was the father of Manu, Sebastián and Leandro Ginóbili and had been suffering from a degenerative disease for some time.

When Manu Ginóbili was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame, he gave an emotional speech in which he dedicated some heartfelt words to his father: “Dad… how I wish you were here and could understand what’s going on today. My first faithful and biggest follower. I miss you so much, old man”said the visibly emotional Argentine basketball player in September 2022.

Yuyo Ginóbili’s legacy is much greater than the fact that he was the father of Manu, the best basketball player in the history of Argentina and one of the most influential foreign players in the NBA. His whole life revolved around the sport invented by James Naismith.

At the age of 10, according to journalist Fernando Rodríguez, of La Nueva Provincia de Bahía Banca, he started flirting with the orange ball while playing for Bahiense Juniors. There, as he reached 85 meters, that’s where he began to shape himself as a point guard who had good long-range shooting percentages and interesting ball handling.

He wore the number 5 shirt and in that club, where he was champion as a youngster, he made his debut in the First Division at 17. He also came to defend the jersey of the powerful selection of the city of him for a couple of years. Their nickname was also born there: their standing hairs helped a brilliant mind liken them to “field weeds”. And from that moment on, Jorge became Yuyo. For everyone.

Bahiense Juniors merged with Deportivo Norte in 1975 and that’s when Bahiense del Norte was born. At the time, already working for Nobleza Piccardo -the tobacco company where he served for 39 years-, he decided to retire as a player to become the president of the new club.

He headed the institution for a decade, with his wife, Raquel Maccari, as an unconditional bulwark. The Bahiense del Norte, one of the nurseries of the national basketball capital, was his second home: the main one was in via Vergara. It was there that the personalities and talents of Leandro, Sebastián and Emanuel were formed and forged.

Devotion to Manu

“One of the most spectacular championships in which Manu played was the 2002 World Cup in the USA, in which unfortunately he could not be in the final. In the semifinal he dislocated himself and was unable to be complete in the final. At that moment Manu began to be in the fullness of him. Then, the Euroleague finals in Italy were spectacular, not to mention the NBA. The only thing I didn’t experience was the Athens Olympics, which I saw on television, but it was very impressive, it brought you into a state of great emotion. When they sang the anthem, raised the flag and the whole team formed, it was an emotional moment,” Yuyo recalled in an interview with Básquet Plus five years ago.

And he continued: “I would tell him that he has made us live 20 years of glory, of spectacular sensations and of unmatched sporting results for now. Hopefully, people will soon come to replace the Golden Generation. As a person he has shown himself with the boys, with his friends, with all the people who know him … It is a satisfaction to see him accomplished ”.

the taxes

The Argentine Basketball Confederation spoke via Twitter about the death of Manu’s father: “Pain and great sadness for the death of Jorge “Yuyo” Ginóbili, former player and historical leader of Bahiense del Norte. From the CAB we express our condolences and send the Our condolences to the Ginóbili family, especially to Emanuel, Sebastián and Leandro, at this difficult time.”

For its part, the Bahiense Basketball Association also recalled this. “We deeply regret the passing of Jorge “Yuyo” Ginóbili. An inevitable reference point for Bahiense del Norte, the cornerstone of its creation as an institution, player, coach, manager and friend. Our condolences to his family, friends and relatives. RIP” , he posted on Twitter.