Miloslav Kříž (29 May 1924 – 20 May 2013) was a Czech professional

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 and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. As a player, he played first for Uncas Prague, and later for

Sparta Prague ) but refer to Spartans as "''Rudí''" ( en, The Dark Reds/The Maroons).'' Letenští'' , ground = Generali Česká pojišťovna Arena , capacity = 19,416 , clubname = Sparta Prague , image = Sparta Praha logo.png , image_size = 160px , fu ...

, but he was better known as a

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...

and trainer, especially as the head coach of the senior Czechoslovakian women's national team. He was awarded the

FIBA Order of Merit FIBA Order of Merit is an international basketball award that is awarded by FIBA, the international basketball federation. The award is given to individuals that have made very significant individual contributions to furthering the sport of basket ...

, for his services to basketball, in 2002.

Playing career

Kříž played for Uncas Prague, from 1940 to 1943, leaving to join

BC Sparta Prague Sparta Praha is among the oldest and most popular sports clubs in the country, with a number of fans not only in Prague but throughout the whole of the Czech Republic. The foundation of the club dates back to 1893 (AC Sparta Praha). Club colours a ...

, in 1944, where he remained until 1948.

Coaching career

While still a player at

, Kříž began

coaching Coaching is a form of development in which an experienced person, called a ''coach'', supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance. The learner is sometimes called a ''coa ...

both the club's women's team (from 1945), and men's team (from 1947). He finished in both of those roles in 1950, moving on to coach ATK Praha, for one season. In 1953, he returned to Sparta Prague, coaching the women's team for 11 years. During the same period, Kříž was also the head coach of the senior Czechoslovak Women's National Team, from 1946 to 1948, and again, from 1960 to 1968. The team finished third in the 1967 FIBA World Championship for Women. They were also runners-up in the

EuroBasket Women 1962 The 1962 European Women's Basketball Championship was the 8th regional championship held by FIBA Europe for women. The competition was held in Mulhouse, France and took place on September 22–29, 1962. The Soviet Union won their sixth gold medal ...

and the

EuroBasket Women 1966 The 1966 EuroBasket Women, European Women Basketball Championship, commonly called EuroBasket Women 1966, was the 10th regional championship held by FIBA Europe. The competition was held in Romania. won the gold medal and the silver medal while ...

, and finished third at the

EuroBasket Women 1964 The 1964 EuroBasket Women, European Women Basketball Championship, commonly called EuroBasket Women 1964, was the 9th regional championship held by FIBA Europe. The competition was held in Hungary. won the gold medal and the silver medal while w ...

. Kříž then moved to Germany, where from 1968 to 1971, he was the head coach of the senior German Men's National Team, and also of

VfL Osnabrück VfL Osnabrück is a German multi-sport club in Osnabrück, Lower Saxony. It currently fields teams in basketball, gymnastics, swimming, table tennis, and tennis but is by far best known for its football section. History Foundation to WW2 The cl ...

, who were the men's

club Club may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Club'' (magazine) * Club, a ''Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character * Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards * Club music * "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea'' Brands and enterprises ...

champions of Germany in 1969. He also coached the

FIBA European Selection FIBA All-Star Games were all-star basketball exhibition games, which were also known as "FIBA Festivals". The "FIBA Festival All-Star Games" were held from 1964 to 1995. The FIBA European Selection teams won most of the FIBA Festival All-Star Ga ...

teams, between 1964 and 1968.
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Basketball administration

Czechoslovakia

Kříž was also active in a variety of basketball organisations. Within Czechoslovakia, he was a member of the board of the Czechoslovak Volleyball and Basketball Federation (1946–51), President of DSO Spartak LZ Plzeň, DSO Spartak (1953–56), and leader of the Czechoslovak Basketball Federation's International Commission (1956–68). From 1973 until 1986, he was President of the Czech Basketball Federation, and Vice-President of the Czechoslovak Basketball Federation. From 1990 until 1993, he was the President of

, and made Honorary President thereafter.

FIBA

Internationally, Kříž held a number of positions within

FIBA The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the (hence FIBA), in 1989 it dropped the word ''amateur'' from its na ...

. He was a member of staff for the European zone, from 1956–68, and again from 1973–80, as well as a member of the FIBA European Cups commission, from 1972–76 and from 1990–94. From 1980–90, he was a member of FIBA World, and President of the Women's Commission, and from 1994 until 2000, he was FIBA Commissioner, presiding over 678 games in total.

Later career

Between 1970 and 1985, Kříž was the chief of the sports section at the Czechoslovak press agency. In his later career, he practiced law.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kriz, Miloslav Czech basketball coaches Czech men's basketball players 1924 births 2013 deaths Czechoslovak men's basketball players Czechoslovak basketball coaches