The Balearic tennis player wanted to join the tribute that his great friend will live this morning at the Crypto Arena
“Pau is a very necessary example for everyone. He has marked the path of future generations”
If anyone can discuss the honor to best spanish athlete of all time to Pau Gasol, it is only his great friend Rafael Nadal. The Balearic tennis player did not want to miss the opportunity to join the great tribute that Pau will live with his shirt retirement at the Crypto Arena and in a message from his Academy, he has not hesitated to praise him.
“May the most emblematic team in NBA history retire Pau’s jersey it’s something amazing. You have to be super proud of what he has achieved, and it is just one more example of what Pau is and what he has meant in the most important league in the world and in a sport in which things like that seemed very far away“he assures before the Lakers’ gesture of hanging up his shirt.
In addition, Nadal has not hesitated to state that Pau has been one of the biggestif not the most, for opening a path that had never been achieved before in Spanish sport. “He is one of the greatest historical references of our sporta pioneer in achieving things that had never been achieved before, especially in a sport like basketball, dominated by the Americans. Pau has marked the way for many others who will come later”.
Beyond a friendship
The relationship between the two has always gone beyond a simple friendship between two great athletes. Admiration and mutual respect between the two, They mark the path of know-how for future generations. And in that sense, Rafa does not hide that Pau is an example of values and of doing the right things at all times. “He is a very good example of values that must be attributed to an athlete in order for him to succeed. Not only as an athlete but also as an example of how to get there and how to do things, of respect for others. It is a much-needed example for everyone.”
On a personal level, the Spaniard feels proud of to have been able to share with him many of the great moments of his career and have been able to enjoy his achievements live and direct. “I have many memories about Pau. I am a great fan of sports in general and I have a thousand moments in my memory. Besides I have been lucky enough to experience some of them live and to have shared them with him” assures an enthusiastic Rafa before the tribute that his great friend will experience.