New Coach for Panama's Basketball Team

Panama will face the second qualifying window on the road to the 2027 World Cup. In the current qualifiers, Panama is in Group D, alongside Argentina, Venezuela, and Cuba. Panama is seeking to qualify for its fifth basketball World Cup, having participated in the 1970, 1982, 1986, and 2006 editions. Nelson Colón, a Puerto Rican, was introduced as the new head coach of the Panama national team with the challenge of qualifying the national quintet for the World Cup in Qatar 2027. Colón acknowledged that there is little time left for the next window, so it must be taken advantage of. He also mentioned that he watched the games from the first window, where Panama lost both matches to Uruguay. Panama is aiming for its fifth basketball World Cup, with its last appearance being in 2006 in Japan. Colón admitted that Panama's situation is "complicated" with a 0-2 record in wins and losses, but at the same time, he showed optimism and decided to take the lead of the Panamanian team as "a challenge" to achieve the goal. The group is led by Argentina with 4 points, Uruguay (4), Panama and Cuba, both with 2 points. The national team will have to prepare to visit Cuba on February 26 and Argentina on March 1. The top three teams advance to the next phase of the qualifiers on the road to the 2027 World Cup in Qatar. Nelson Colón takes over the post, replacing Argentine Gonzalo García. Colón, who comes from coaching Puerto Rico at a World Cup and at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, stated that he is a "very defensive coach", which requires "preparation and effort". "You will get the best of me," said the Puerto Rican, who added, "what happened, happened", we have to look ahead and accept the challenge, referring to the games against the Uruguayans.