Otar Korkia ( Georgian: ოთარ ქორქია, russian: Отар Михайлович Коркия; May 10, 1923 – March 15, 2005) was a Georgian 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 * Coac ...

. He was named one of FIBA's 50 Greatest Players, in 1991. He was also named the Best Georgian Basketball Player of the 20th Century, and the Best Georgian Sportsman of the 20th Century.GEORGIA LOSES LEGEND KORKIA.
/ref> He was born in

Kutaisi Kutaisi (, ka, ქუთაისი ) is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and the third-most populous city in Georgia, traditionally, second in importance, after the capital city of Tbilisi. Situated west of Tbil ...

Playing career

Club career

During his

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 ...

career, Korkia played with

Dinamo Kutaisi FC Dinamo Kutaisi ( ka, დინამო ქუთაისი) is a Georgian football club, which plays in Kutaisi, Georgia's second city. They play their home games at Givi Kiladze Stadium. During Georgian SSR Championships it was very famous ...

, from 1940 to 1947, and with

Dinamo Tbilisi Dinamo Tbilisi is a sports club from Tbilisi, Georgia. It was founded in 1925. Among its highest honors, is the European trophy earned by its football team which won the Cup Winners' Cup in 1981, beating FC Carl Zeiss Jena of East Germany 2� ...

, from 1947 to 1958. He won three USSR League championships (1950, 1953, and 1954) and two USSR Cups, (1949 and 1950).

National team career

Korkia was a member of the senior

Soviet Union national basketball team The Soviet Union men's national basketball team ( rus, сбо́рная СССР по баскетболу, r=sbórnaya SSSR po basketbolu) was the national basketball team that represented the Soviet Union in international competitions. After t ...

, which won the silver medal at the

1952 Summer Olympic Games The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...

. He played in seven games during that tournament. He later became the

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

of the senior Soviet national team. He also won gold medals at the

1947 EuroBasket The 1947 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1947, was the fifth FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA. Fourteen national teams affiliated with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) took ...

, the

1951 EuroBasket The 1951 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1951, was the seventh FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA. Eighteen national teams affiliated with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) en ...

, and the

1953 EuroBasket The 1953 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1953, was the eighth FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA. Seventeen national teams affiliated with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) en ...

. Additionally, he won the bronze medal at the

1955 EuroBasket The 1955 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1955, was the ninth FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA. Eighteen national teams affiliated with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) enter ...

Coaching career

Korkia was the

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 asso ...

, when the club won the FIBA European Champions Cup (later called EuroLeague) championship, in the 1961–62 season. He was named an Honored Coach of the USSR, in 1967.

Titles won

Player

* USSR League (3): 1950, 1953, 1954 * USSR Cup (2): 1949, 1950 *

EuroBasket EuroBasket, also commonly referred to as the European Basketball Championship, is the main international basketball competition that is contested quadrennially, by the senior men's national teams that are governed by FIBA Europe, which is the ...

(3):

1947 It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Events January * January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country i ...

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito is chosen President of Yugosl ...

Head coach

* EuroLeague (1):

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wor ...

Personal life

Korkia died in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million pe ...

, aged 81. His nephew,

Mikheil Mikheil ( ka, მიხეილ) is a masculine Georgian given name. It may refer to: * Mikheil of Georgia, Georgian royal prince, son of King George XII * Mikheil Saakashvili, Georgian politician, former President of Georgia * Mikheil Janelidze, G ...

, was also a well-known senior Soviet national basketball team player.

References

External links

FIBA Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Korkia, Otar 1923 births 2005 deaths Basketball coaches from Georgia (country) Basketball players at the 1952 Summer Olympics BC Dinamo Tbilisi coaches BC Dinamo Tbilisi players BC Kutaisi 2010 players Centers (basketball) EuroLeague-winning coaches FIBA EuroBasket-winning players Medalists at the 1952 Summer Olympics Men's basketball players from Georgia (country) Mingrelians Olympic basketball players of the Soviet Union Olympic medalists in basketball Olympic silver medalists for the Soviet Union Soviet basketball coaches Soviet men's basketball players Sportspeople from Kutaisi Honoured Masters of Sport of the USSR