BERLIN (Germany) - It's been a glorious and whirlwind 18 months or so for Svenja Brunckhorst, who's still bursting with pride and pinching herself after being crowned an Olympic 3x3 champion with Germany at Paris 2024.
Now she finds herself looking forward with feverish excitement to the start of the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026 in her homeland. In between standing on the top step of the podium in the French capital and counting down the days until to the start of next year's showpiece event in Berlin, she opted to hang up her basketball shoes.
It was our Cinderella story and I don't think anybody believed that we could achieve the gold medal
That gave her the opportunity to step into roles both as Alba Berlin Sporting Director and being part of the organization team for the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026. The combination of her experiences on the court as a player and her newfound insights behind the scenes have put her in an ideal position to lift the lid on how it's boom-time for women's basketball in Germany. And, how that momentum has a long way to go before anyone can even talk about it reaching a peak. But of course, you can't engage with an Olympic champion without firstly talking about that epic and unforgettable golden moment. One that came not only as captain of her team, but in her very last competitive game wearing her beloved national team jersey. "The feelings are 'goosebumps' when thinking about the Paris Olympics," smiled Brunckhorst.
"It was our Cinderella story and I don't think anybody believed that we could achieve the gold medal. Realizing in the end that we actually made it was surreal. And, it still gives me chills now." As well as providing a fairytale finish to her career, the wider significance of that monumental night means that 3x3 is now woven into the fabric of the sports mainstream in Germany.
A truly iconic moment, becoming an inspirational chapter in the evolution of basketball. "It's a big thing and almost 10 million people watched the Final," she explained. "3x3 has had huge success in Germany, since not so many people knew about it before. What we heard from clubs and teams all over Germany was that young girls and boys wanted to play 3x3, so this makes me super happy that we showed them how great 3x3 is and that so many players want to now play. "We have seen the big growth of 3x3 in Germany and I hope it will continue like this."
Brunckhorst added: "I'm really looking forward now to LA 2028. I hope we will qualify because I think we have the potential for Germany to be at another Olympic Games. Ours was the first Olympic medal for German basketball, so this will always be something that we can carry with us." Of course, alongside excelling in 3x3 at Paris 2024, Germany were also making positive basketball waves only a short distance away in Lille.
They made their first ever Olympic appearance and racked up a maiden victory - memorably sweeping aside the highly fancied Belgium and eventually reaching the Quarter-Finals.
So it's a huge opportunity to have all these best players in the world in one city, in Berlin and showing that women's basketball belongs at this highest level.
But before all eyes move towards the next edition of the Games, the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2026 is the priority. Not least because Germany has the chance to continue its success and momentum - both on and off the court. "It's a once in a lifetime opportunity because the last World Cup we hosted was 28 years ago," declared Brunckhorst. "So it's been a while and I think in those years, women's basketball was not on the radar. So it's a huge opportunity to have all these best players in the world in one city, in Berlin and showing that women's basketball belongs at this highest level.
"It can also give younger ones some role models and show them that if you want to become a pro-player in Germany, then it's possible." If the big show in Berlin can live up to expectations as anticipated, then the sport is more than likely to continue its rise and rise in the country. With the men's team winning the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 and putting the sport even more centrally on the map, the women's team have elevated themselves rapidly too. Although not yet getting onto the World Cup podium like their male counterparts, Brunckhorst is adamant that basketball in her country as a whole is thriving and unrecognisable from when starting her own career.
She confirmed: "I think the game has grown a lot. We had never qualified for a FIBA Women's EuroBasket in over 12 years during much of my experience with the national team, but since 2023 we are finally back.
I think we have even changed German society, because now basketball is well known and everyone wants to play.
"We now have so many top stars and I think we have showed what we are capable of and we're finally on the stage where we belong. If I also look at the generations coming up, I think there will be a golden future for German basketball and it shows there has been a lot of changes in these last years. "We have given our talents more resources, better coaches, more training facilities and better conditions. This has helped to get better players out there and even more people into the game. Now we have started more with the young ones going to school and it's not only about soccer now in Germany. "I think we have even changed German society, because now basketball is well known and everyone wants to play." Despite having already lived through an amazing fairytale, another one could be on the horizon for Germany when they step out in Berlin next year. "We all talk about a medal - all the players talk about a medal," revealed Brunckhorst.
"I think that if everyone is healthy and the full team is there, we are capable of it. We have the top players like Satou Sabally and Leonie Fiebich on the roster, but we also have young ones coming in and then chipping in - we showed this at the FIBA Women's EuroBasket 2025. "We have a lot of talent in this team and we are also a really tall team and this will be a big struggle for a lot of [opposing] teams. I am hoping for a really good tournament and I think we can play with the big teams," she concluded. Before taking to the court to the adulation of the home fans next September, Germany will play in the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026 Qualifying Tournaments this upcoming March.
While their place is already assured as host nation in Berlin, new head coach Olaf Lange and his players will know how important the action in Lyon-Villeurbanne could be on the path towards pushing for what would be a first medal.
One that would write yet another dreamy chapter in the ever-impressive evolution of German basketball. FIBA