3x3 - Interview with Pablo Thuler

LAUSANNE (3x3) - Pablo Thuler is one of the many avid basketball players and fans in Switzerland. His love for the game started at the age of five and since he hasn't been able to let go of the orange ball.

He played in basketball teams up until he was 18 years old after which he consecrated his time to his passion and love; the game of Streetball. In 2008 alongside his five friends, he established the Urban Basket association to help promote the incredible game of 3x3 in Switzerland.

 

 

Organizer's Profile
Name/Surname: Pablo Thuler
Studies: Studying cultural management in Lausanne
Current activities: Works at the Lausanne public library and is the current president of the Urban Basket association.
 

FIBA: What is the background of Urban Basket?
It basically all started in 2008 with the idea of reviving Streetball in Switzerland.  With a couple of guys we felt a bit of nostalgia because back in the 90's there used to be a lot of 3x3 events and then it all kind of disappeared.  So in 2007 we participated in a tournament in Morges and that's pretty much when we decided to take over and do our own thing.  In 2009 we held our first tournament in Morges and the following year as well. 

2011 two tournaments were held again, one was in the city of Neuchatel and the last again in Morges.  So that's kind of the genesis of Urban Basket. Our main goals are to assure the promotion and development of 3x3 basketball. From the very beginning we knew that we wouldn't be able to cover all of Switzerland and that we would have to concentrate on a specific region. We also try to help or give service to other 3x3 organisations in Switzerland.

FIBA: Since 2008 have you noticed an increase in participants for 3x3?
Yeah for sure, if I recall correctly back when we hosted our first tournament in 2008 we had 70 players and about 100 spectators. Then this year we counted 210 players and over 400 spectators, so we've tripled in three years which isn't bad at all.

Obviously we would like to have all of our tournaments outside because the atmosphere is better but sometimes depending on the month we can't take the risk.  However next year we've planned to have our tournaments in June in order to allow the players to have a real Streetball feeling.

FIBA: Do you think that 3x3 helps promote basketball in general?
I believe that having tournaments outside in the city centre really helps people and fans get a glimpse of the sport. That can motivate them to want to play 3x3 or normal basketball. Most of the time we can't have our events outside for weather purposes so we use gyms.

Most of them here in our region aren't well equipped for that. In a gym it's difficult to have enough room for the players, fans and shows but we manage with what we have.

FIBA: What kind of side shows do you put forth at your events?
This year in 2011 we had two rock bands that came over to Neuchatel; we had dancers and a freestyle soccer team. Then in Morges we had guys who came over and did graffiti, we had several dancers, a DJ who played music all day and bunch of other small stuff. The youth love that kind of entertainment and we tried creating Urban Basket in a way that not only allows you to play but to also participate in other fun activities.

We try to let them discover new things each time we host events, so it's a fun environment for everyone.  I think most people don't just want to watch five or six hours of basketball none stop and that's why we try to offer them something new each time.

FIBA: Now that you've been doing these events for the last three years. How do you see it developing in the near future?
Well I can already give you a small scoop because next year we plan to host a tournament in Geneva. We're really happy about this project, we still have to look into a couple of details with the city but we're optimistic about our chances on being able to host a 3x3 event in a bigger city.

After that we plan to stop promoting 3x3 in smaller towns for at least two years and concentrate more on creating a real tour. I'd also like to have other sports in future events so that we can touch a larger audience.

FIBA: Has it been difficult at times to ensure that it gets better and better?
For sure it has.  My friends and I look back at the 90's and see how there used to be a lot of 3x3 events and rap concerts.  Then all of a sudden it died off about ten years ago because there was no one who wanted to take over.

In our group we have a small saying that goes "either you make excuses or you find solutions" and we try to find solutions to our problems. I think with that attitude we've been able to overcome our obstacles and make it a better event.

FIBA: Did it scare you at first to see FIBA get involved with 3x3?
I must say that in beginning I was extremely nervous that they would impose very strict rules and guidelines. Then I got in touch with the FIBA 3x3 team and they explained to me in depth about the whole project. What I really like is that they want to keep the whole Streetball feeling as it is and not change it. 

So since then we've been trying to adapt our style to the FIBA one, especially with the Referees. Before we didn't use any because we thought it wasn't necessary but FIBA made us realise that it was.  It was really interesting to see all the different things that FIBA thought about because initially we never went deep into the structure of our events.

We're also very excited about the whole 3x3 World Championship and World Tour, who knows maybe one day we'll be able to oragnise an event for the World Tour in Switzerland.

FIBA: We also heard that you hand out some very original trophies to the event winners. What are they?
We actually hand out bricks. The whole idea behind that is that we wanted to give something different than just a normal sport trophy. We thought that a brick was a pretty good idea because it brings kind of a street feeling to it.

We always get a kick out of going to the store and asking for three or four bricks because the salesman wonders what we're going to do with four bricks. We don't just hand out bricks like that, we give them to a guy who paints them at the event and makes a nice artistic object out of it.  Our next goal is to take benches and turn them into trophies but I'm not sure if we'll make it happen.

FIBA: What drives you to bring 3x3 basketball to the community?
To see that the players, fans and others want more of it motivates our group to keep pushing for new and better events. People now expect us to come up with creative ways to present them 3x3 basketball.

I think that we've become a key figure for the Streetball world here in Switzerland.  Basically we're just perusing our dream and I think that is what drives me the most as well as my friends who are part of Urban Basket!


FIBA