Michael "Mike" Joseph Sylvester (born December 10, 1951) is an American and Italian retired

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player who is currently coach at

Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy (CHCA) is a private school, private, PK2 – Grade 12, college preparatory, non-denominational Christian school located on four campuses in Cincinnati, Ohio. Three of its campuses (Edyth B. Lindner Campus, Founde ...

. Due to the United States boycotting the

1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...

, he was the only American to win a medal at those games, using a dual citizenship to play for

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

Biography

Sylvester was born December 10, 1951 in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. He graduated from

Moeller High School Moeller High School ( ), known as Moeller, is a private, all-male, college-preparatory high school in the suburbs of Cincinnati, in Hamilton County, Ohio. It is currently one of four all-male Catholic high schools in the Cincinnati area. Histo ...

with

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n honors and played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

at the

University of Dayton The University of Dayton (UD) is a private, Catholic research university in Dayton, Ohio. Founded in 1850 by the Society of Mary, it is one of three Marianist universities in the nation and the second-largest private university in Ohio. The univ ...

. At , he was known as an accurate shooter. Sylvester's highlight with the

Dayton Flyers The Dayton Flyers are the intercollegiate athletic teams of the University of Dayton of Dayton, Ohio. All Flyers intercollegiate sports teams participate at the NCAA Division I level. The football team competes in the Division I FCS non-schola ...

happened at the 1974 NCAA championship, scoring 36 points in a game where the Flyers forced three overtimes and nearly upset

Bill Walton William Theodore Walton III (born November 5, 1952) is an American television sportscaster and former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for coach John Wooden and the UCLA Bruins, winning three consecutive national ...

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

. Following that, Sylvester reported for both the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

and ABA Drafts, being chosen only in the sixth round by the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at Li ...

in the

1974 NBA draft The 1974 NBA draft was the 28th annual NBA Draft, draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 28, 1974, before the 1974–75 NBA season, 1974–75 season. In this draft, 18 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur ...

, and the tenth by the

Carolina Cougars The Carolina Cougars were a basketball franchise in the American Basketball Association that existed from 1969 through 1974. The Cougars were originally a charter member of the ABA as the Houston Mavericks in 1967. The Mavericks moved to North Ca ...

in the ABA one. Afterwards,

Cesare Rubini Cesare, the Italian version of the given name Caesar, may refer to: Given name * Cesare, Marquis of Beccaria (1738–1794), an Italian philosopher and politician * Cesare Airaghi (1840–1896), Italian colonel * Cesare Arzelà (1847–1912), I ...

of Italian team

Olimpia Milano Pallacanestro Olimpia Milano, commonly known as Olimpia Milano or as EA7 Emporio Armani Milan after its title sponsor, is an LBA Italian professional basketball team, based in Milan, Italy. Its colors are white and red, and the team is sometimes ...

invited him to play for the team in the

1974–75 FIBA Korać Cup The 1974–75 FIBA Korać Cup was the fourth edition of FIBA's new competition, running from 5 November 1974 to 25 March 1975. It was contested by 42 teams, five more than in the previous edition. Birra Forst Cantù defeated CF Barcelona in the ...

. Rubini was ordered by Milano president to seek-out American basketball players of Italian descent who wished to become naturalized citizens and play for Italy. Sylvester qualified due to a grandfather being an Italian immigrant. Sylvester (known in Italy as "Silvester") would then sign with Milano, and right away be a major part of the team that won the

1975–76 FIBA European Cup Winners' Cup The 1975–76 FIBA European Cup Winners' Cup was the tenth edition of FIBA's 2nd-tier level European-wide professional club basketball competition, contested between national domestic cup champions, running from 29 October 1975, to 17 March 1976. ...

. Milano's victorious years with Sylvester would end in 1980, as after he had a heated argument with teammate

C. J. Kupec Charles Jerome "C. J." Kupec (born January 16, 1953) is a former American basketball small forward in the National Basketball Association for the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets. He also was a member of the Olimpia Billy Milano, Squibb C ...

, coach

Dan Peterson Daniel Lowell Peterson (born January 9, 1936) is a former American professional basketball head coach. He resigned from his most recent position as the head coach of Olimpia Milano in the Italian LBA after the team was eliminated in the semi-fin ...

would request for Sylvester to leave the team, and he would be traded to

Pesaro Pesaro () is a city and ''comune'' in the Italian region of Marche, capital of the Province of Pesaro e Urbino, on the Adriatic Sea. According to the 2011 census, its population was 95,011, making it the second most populous city in the Marche, ...

for a then-Italian record $500,000. His Italian career also included stints with

Basket Rimini Rinascita Basket Rimini (RBR), formerly known as Basket Rimini and Basket Rimini Crabs, is an Italian basketball team based in Rimini, Emilia-Romagna. From the 1978–79 to the 2010–11 season, the team continuously played in professional basket ...

and

Virtus Bologna Virtus Pallacanestro Bologna, known for sponsorship reasons as Virtus Segafredo Bologna, is an Italian professional basketball club based in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna. The club was founded in 1929, which makes it the oldest club in Italy and one ...

.Mike Silvester
Sylvester was naturalized Italian in 1977. Three years later, he would be called for the

Italy national basketball team The Italy men's national basketball team ( it, Nazionale di pallacanestro dell'Italia) represents Italy in international basketball tournaments. They are administered by the Italian Basketball Federation (FIP). Italy has qualified for 38 EuroBa ...

, and had a great performance at the European qualifier that gave the Italians a spot at the Olympic tournament to be held in Moscow. However, as soon as Sylvester heard the United States was leading the

1980 Summer Olympics boycott The 1980 Summer Olympics boycott was one part of a number of actions initiated by the United States to protest against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The Soviet Union, which hosted the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, and its allies later ...

, Sylvester wondered if he needed to adhere, particularly as an Italian player refusing an Olympic invitation could potentially banned from playing professionally. He contacted the

U.S. State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other nati ...

, who advised Sylvester to play. He still abstained from a vote within the Italian team about the boycott, saying he would follow the squad's decision – the Italians eventually played, though under the

Olympic flag The International Olympic Committee (IOC) uses icons, flags and symbols to elevate the Olympic Games. These symbols include those commonly used during Olympic competition—such as the flame, fanfare and theme—as well as those used throughout ...

. Despite suffering a sprained ankle during the

, he won a silver medal after the Italians upset the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

before losing the Olympic final to

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

. Sylvester was the only American to win a medal at those games. In the following years, he would spend six seasons with

Scavolini Pesaro Victoria Libertas (also known as "VL" or in Italian ''Vuelle''), full name Unione Sportiva Victoria Libertas Pallacanestro, is a professional basketball team that is based in Pesaro, Italy. The club competes in the top level Italian professiona ...

, leading them to the 1985 Coppa Italia, two

Italian League The Italic League or Most Holy League was an international agreement concluded in Venice on 30 August 1454, between the Papal States, the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Republic of Florence, and the Kingdom of Naples, following the Tr ...

Runner-Up finishes (1981–82 & 1984–85), the 1983 Saporta Cup title, the 1986 Saporta Cup Finals and the 1984 Saporta Cup Semis. Sylvester is a current resident of

Loveland, Ohio Loveland is a city in Hamilton, Clermont, and Warren counties in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. Considered part of the Greater Cincinnati area, Loveland is located near exit 52 off Interstate 275, about northeast of the Cinc ...

. The Sylvester family has a sports tradition. Mike's brothers

Steve ''yes'Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen Notable people with the name include: steve jops * Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people * Steve Adams (disambiguation), several people * Steve ...

and Vince were

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

players, with the former reaching the

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

playing for the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...

, and the latter being a college star at the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,00 ...

. Mike's son Matt was also a basketball player, playing in college for

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

before going to Europe like his father. How One Shot 10 Years Ago Changed Everything for Ohio State Basketball
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References

External links

Archbishop Moeller High School Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sylvester, Michael 1951 births Living people Basketball players at the 1980 Summer Olympics Basketball players from Cincinnati Basket Rimini Crabs players Dayton Flyers men's basketball players Carolina Cougars draft picks Detroit Pistons draft picks High school basketball coaches in the United States Italian men's basketball players Italian people of American descent Olimpia Milano players Olympic basketball players of Italy Olympic medalists in basketball Olympic silver medalists for Italy People from Loveland, Ohio Victoria Libertas Pesaro players Virtus Bologna players Medalists at the 1980 Summer Olympics American men's basketball players American sportspeople of Italian descent