Going from firm underdogs to Olympic gold medalists, Svenja Brunckhorst recalls Germany’s Paris 2024 triumph as a “Cinderella story” a year on – and not only for the memories of her farewell career game, but also for its impact on 3x3 basketball’s spike in popularity in her home nation.
“This is something that is bigger than the Olympic medal for me,” Svenja says passionately. “I’ve always wanted to inspire young people to play basketball – now, there’s a new generation coming through who want to be basketball players. How great is that in a country where basketball isn’t often seen so much?”
Germany defeated Spain 17-16 at the Place de la Concorde – sealing the country’s first ever basketball gold medal. “It was extraordinary – to even qualify for the Olympics was big for us,” Svenja continues. “It was historical for German women’s basketball, too, being the first national team to qualify for the Olympics. I think nobody really knew about German 3x3 basketball and we could tell that nobody had huge expectations for us.
“We were the underdog. So, when we reached the final, somewhere over 10 million people watched it in Germany – to go from being the underdog to the most-watched final in our history was something special.”
Now the Manager for Girls’ and Women’s Basketball at Alba Berlin, an iconic basketball club in the German capital paving a new road for the women’s game, Svenja says she is inspired to “give back” to the sport which has provided her with so much.
“I have been vocal over the years about the way clubs are being run for girls and women – whether it’s around equal pay, or its playing conditions and professionalism,” she explains. “I have always used my voice, hoping something can change. Now, for the first time in my career, I have an opportunity to change something within a club which has traditionally be known for its men’s basketball.
“Now we have the opportunity to improve the women’s league in Germany, improve the competition, and nurture more young talent which wants to stay and play in Germany. This is my biggest goal – to improve the whole ecosystem and professionalism within women’s basketball.”
Despite her ambition off the court, Svenja acknowledges the personal challenge of leaving behind her playing career having taken her final bow during Germany’s gold-medal game. “I see huge potential for the women’s game – and I am not done promoting the sport. However, the transition from being a professional player has been difficult if I am honest. I think that is the case for every pro athlete who finally says, after such a long career: ‘This is my final game.’
“I still feel super connected to the playing group, it’s a huge transition, but has given me a clear purpose and direction after I finished playing. I fell in love with the sport at the age of six, before moving from my hometown in the north to the city of Wasserburg, near Munich, which was home to one of Germany’s most successful teams in women’s basketball. There, I first saw the players in the first division, and I’d told myself that I wanted to be there one day.
“It’s all about having a role model. Germany always had tennis superstars like Steffi Graf and are strong in the Winter Olympics. Now, having won gold in Paris, we have 3x3 basketball. We have so many parents calling us, wanting their children to join a 3x3 team. We have taken a huge step in getting this sport out there. It’s such a new world to us.”
Whereas German basketball is basking in the glow of Olympic glory, it hasn’t always been the case, Svenja explains. “We had had a long period where German basketball wasn’t on the map. We had 12 years when Germany didn’t play at the major European competitions. Sometimes it takes a new generation to change things. We had that when a ‘golden generation’ came along in 2018 which won the Under-18 European Championships; many of the players went to the US colleges and were drafted. Since then, we have had more teams nurturing good players. The federations noticed this and invested more in the national team and infrastructure.
“I’d always played 5x5 and we won lots of titles in German. When I was 28, I felt like I needed a change. It was the first time that the national 3x3 team implemented a coach, who called me to see if I wanted to play. I said I didn’t know much about it, so I was invited to play at the European Games in Minsk in 2019 with a good playing squad. We had never really played before and made so many mistakes, but we had a lot of fun.”
Svenja highlights the German Basketball Federation’s (DBB) changing philosophy towards the women’s game as a key catalyst for its meteoric rise. By 2021, the national team had gone on to win the FIBA 3x3 Women’s Series for the first time; the goal at the time was to do everything in their power to qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
“I think my biggest goal was always to make it to the Olympic but was always super difficult in Europe with the number of quality teams,” Svenja recalls. “But, of course, this was only a vision and, if I am honest, I didn’t think it was possible. As we became more competitive, winning the Women’s Series in 2021, for four years, we’d dedicated everything to qualifying for Paris 2024. I knew then, if we didn’t qualify, that I would stop playing, which gave me four years to put everything on this one blank piece of paper and to build something special. To win gold was like a Cinderella story.”
As Svenja embarks on a new chapter in her FIBA 3x3 career, the 33-year-old believes the German national team’s new-found success doesn’t rest on its four gold medallists alone – for the first time in the country’s basketball history, Germany has in place a “competitive ecosystem” for which dozens of players supported the national team’s Olympic roadmap and one which Svenja is determined to build on for future generations.
“It’s really important to remember that there are more than the players behind the national team,” she continues. “There were as many as 50 players focused on the objective of qualifying for the Olympics and I think this was something we had that other nations potentially didn’t. The gold medal isn’t only about the four players on the day but was the result of so many people who helped grow women’s basketball over the years.”