Basketball is one of the most practiced sports in Lanzarote, although it is not exactly the one that predominates in a municipality like Haría. However, Darío Medina decided to leave soccer, which is what his friends practiced the most, and at the age of 9 he signed up for basketball, a sport that has allowed him to accumulate experiences and cross borders.
Darío Medina is a young resident of Punta Mujeres of only 18 years old, who recently returned to the island after spending a full season in the Republic of Ireland. Medina spent his first years in the sport in the team of his town, Haría, until at the age of 12 he signed for Tizziri Tinajo.
“I went to Tinajo with some friends, and we managed to finish second in Lanzarote, which gave us a place in the Canary Islands Championship, it wasn't bad at all,” explains the young man from Haría. He also assures that at that time he had a coach, named Juan Luis, who made him "improve a lot". However, at the age of 15 he changed teams and municipalities again, signing for Conejero, a club in the capital.
It was that change of club that made him see that he could dedicate himself to basketball, and that is that with just 16 years old he managed to debut with the first team in the EBA League, fourth category of national basketball. “It was very special”, says the player, who recognizes that it was in that debut and that season, 2020-2021, that gave him the opportunity to fulfill new experiences.
“One day, the people from NABA arrived in Lanzarote and we played a game against them, and when we finished they notified my mother and told her that they wanted me to go to Ireland with them for a year,” explains Darío Medina. NABA stands for North Atlantic Basketball Academy, an Irish entity that signed an agreement with CB Conejero in 2021, which allowed the exchange of players between both entities with the aim of improving the performance of the players.
Darío Medina assures that when his mother explained to him that the Irish entity wanted him to go there for a season, he “wanted to leave from the first day”, since he recognizes that in Lanzarote “there are not many opportunities”.
A “difficult” start in Ireland
The young man from Haría undertook, in September 2021, what would be the trip of his life: a full season in a basketball academy in Ireland. However, like almost all the changes one makes in life, it had a “difficult” start.
“At first it was very complicated. I didn't have much English, which made adaptation even more difficult,” explains the athlete, although he recognizes that everything changed once he made friends in Ireland. “I learned a lot later, it was a great experience,” he adds.
Darío Medina played in Ireland in the European Youth Basketball, which allowed him to compete in Riga, the capital of Latvia, managing to make one of the championships of his life. “I received the MVP -best player of the tournament- in the category of older than the U20 category, and we also finished second in the category of my age,” he explains.
Life in Ireland was intense for Darío Medina, since in addition to sports he combined his studies. “In the morning I went to school, and when we finished we went to the basketball academy. I arrived at 2 in the afternoon and stayed until 8 at night”, details the young athlete, although he emphasizes that in NABA, in addition to basketball courts, they had “study tables” to be able to continue with academic obligations.
Regarding whether he will return to Ireland when the next season begins, Darío Medina is doubtful about his future: “I am supposed to return in September, although I am also looking at other places to change the environment and play elsewhere”.
“My goal is to achieve something for all the effort my parents have made”
Any young athlete, who has been dedicating time and effort for years to improve performance, has a clear objective: to become a professional. Darío Medina shares that criterion, and that is why he decided to spend a season in Ireland. However, and despite his youth, he shows an admirable maturity and common sense when talking about the future.
“My goal right now is to achieve something for all the effort my parents have made”, says the young athlete, placing special emphasis on the dedication used by his parents in his stage of sports growth.
However, Darío Medina is confident that he can dedicate himself exclusively to basketball professionally, whether in the short or long term. “It would be great to compete in a LEB Oro or LEB Plata”, Medina points out, referring to the second and third category of Spanish basketball.
In addition, Darío Medina advances that he is pending to get some tests in the United States, the cradle of world basketball, to be able to further improve his level of basketball. “It would be great to progress there as much as possible, and then go wherever the wind takes you”, he adds.
“Lanzarote has great players”
Last season, 2020-2021, Aloe Plus Lanzarote Conejeros was relegated from the category and left the EBA League, after five consecutive seasons in the fourth category of national basketball.
Darío Medina assures that Lanzarote has “great players”, and he is confident that the category can be recovered. “El Conejero has good athletes, who if they play well and understand each other can return to EBA,” he says.
However, the young basketball player doubts whether Lanzarote could have a basketball team in even higher categories, such as LEB Plata or LEB Oro. “I couldn't tell you, right now there are not many people of my age playing, and those who do, do it in the Autonomic League,” says Medina, who even recognizes that there is greater monitoring of the sport at the women's level, such as Magec Tías “Against Gender Violence” that competes in the Women's League 2.
Finally, Darío Medina sends a message to the youth of basketball in Lanzarote who have in mind to be able to advance in the sport: “I would tell them that if they have a bad game, do not give up. If they miss a basket, the defense has to be tougher, because there will always be bad days. Never give up”.
