The CEO and head coach of the Battsam women's basketball team from Mashhad, which is set to represent Khorasan Razavi province in the new season of the national basketball premier league, attended a press conference with a group of journalists. This meeting was held at the Aban Hotel in Mashhad and focused on examining the challenges and opportunities facing the team.
Challenges of Last Season and Financial Status
Last season's women's basketball premier league competitions ended with many interruptions and unusual conditions due to social unrest in the country. The Battsam team did not achieve a rank better than sixth, following the departure of their American player, who scored about 90% of the team's points. This departure occurred due to issues faced by foreign players in Iran.
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Last season, the Battsam team faced many financial problems due to budget constraints and even encountered challenges at the end of the season regarding travel expenses. Currently, it seems that the financial situation of this team has not changed significantly, and competing with teams that benefit from support from companies and state-owned factories will be very difficult.
Hopes and Future Plans
Despite these challenges, the CEO and head coach of the team spoke about their motivations to compete with other teams during this meeting. The head coach, Sahar Razazadeh, pointed out the challenges in attracting national players and added that the existing budget for women's basketball in Mashhad is so low that it is only sufficient for the contracts of two national players. She also mentioned meetings held with representatives of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, the governor of Khorasan Razavi, and the mayor of Mashhad to garner financial and non-financial support.
In this meeting, the head coach referred to the promises made for utilizing advertising boards in the basketball home arena, which could help secure financial resources. Given that the women's basketball premier league game will take place next Friday, utilizing these capacities seems essential.
At the end of this meeting, the Battsam club honored Ali Abdahad, a veteran basketball journalist from the Khorasan newspaper. This action reflects the importance of media in informing and supporting women's sports.
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