Iceland’s Basketball ‘Family’ Plays at Top Level US Colleges

Three basketball players from a small island country are playing at the highest level of American college sports.

Thorir Thorbjarnarson, Jon Axel Gudmundsson, and Hakon Hjalmarsson, are the only Icelanders currently¹ playing Division² I basketball in the United States.

Division I is the top level of American college sports. Schools that compete in Division I provide more athletic³ scholarships than other schools and have larger budgets for sports.

The Icelandic players are on different teams. Thorbjarnarson plays at the University of Nebraska. Gudmundsson plays at Davidson College in North Carolina, and Hjalmarsson plays at Binghamton University in the state of New York.

Although they attend different schools, the three players communicate nearly every day and follow each other's games.

Being so far away from home, the three players often lean on each other for support.

"I know every basketball player in Iceland," Thorbjarnarson said. "It's a small family. We call ourselves the ‘basketball family.'"

Basketball in Iceland

Iceland is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of about 360,000.

In Iceland, basketball is less popular than soccer and about as popular as team handball.

There are 6,800 registered⁵ male and female⁶ basketball players in the country, the sport's national federation⁷ says.

The best Icelandic basketball players must go to Europe or the United States to test themselves against top competition. Only one Icelander, Petur Gudmundsson, has played in the National Basketball Association⁸ in America. He played for three different teams in the 1980s.

The three Icelandic players had different paths to American college sports. But they all knew each other before coming to America.

"When you play with the youth national teams, you're always practicing in the same gyms, you're always around each other, you take trips together," Jon Axel Gudmundsson said. "And we played against each other in the adult league in Iceland, so we kind of grew close from there."

The players have had different levels of success so far.

Gudmundsson nearly led his team to a victory over the University of Kentucky in the 2018 NCAA Tournament. He made six 3-pointers in the second half of the game and finished with 21 points.

Hjalmarsson started 10 straight games for Binghamton early this season. But he has received less playing time recently.

"I think I'm progressing all right but I'm not doing as well as I could. I have to be patient," he said.

Hjalmarsson noted⁹ important differences between American and Icelandic basketball.

"Coming here, I didn't think I would have to adjust to anything because I just thought it was basketball," Hjalmarsson said. "After being here a few months, it's a completely different sport."

Hjalmarsson noted that some kinds of physical play are more common in Icelandic basketball. "It's more physical (in Iceland) but I think guys here are more athletic, they're faster, they jump higher," he said.

Gudmundsson noted that he always thinks about who he is representing. "Being from such a small town in such a small country," he added, "I feel it symbolizes¹¹ (the fact) you can do whatever you want if you are willing to put work into it."

Words in This Story

basketball – n. a game in which two teams of five players bounce¹² a ball and try to score points by throwing the ball through one of the raised nets at each end of a rectangular¹³ court

scholarship – n. an amount of money that is given by a school, an organization, etc., to a student to help pay for the student's education

handball – n. a game for two or four players who use their hands to hit a ball against a wall

register⁴ – v. to record information about (something) in a book or system of public records registered – adj. having your name entered in an official list or register

3-pointer – n. a goal in basketball in which the player shoots the ball from beyond the 3-point line

adjust -- v. to change in order to work or do better in a new situation

symbolize¹⁰ -- v. to be a symbol of (something)

1 currently   

adv.通常地，普遍地，当前

参考例句：

• Currently it is not possible to reconcile this conflicting evidence.当前还未有可能去解释这一矛盾的例证。
• Our contracts are currently under review.我们的合同正在复查。

2 division   

n.区分，分开，除法，公司，部门，师(军队里)

参考例句：

• Have you learnt division?你学会除法了吗？
• The division commander ordered that we start the attack before dawn.师长令我们在拂晓前发起攻击。

3 athletic   

adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的

参考例句：

• This area has been marked off for athletic practice.这块地方被划出来供体育训练之用。
• He is an athletic star.他是一个运动明星。

4 register   

n.登记簿，花名册，注册员；v.登记，注册

参考例句：

• Please list your name in the attendance register.请在点名册上登记你的名字。
• He was looking over a hotel register.他正在仔细检查旅馆住宿登记表。

5 registered   

adj.登记的，注册的

参考例句：

• Ships were registered abroad to circumvent employment and safety regulation. 船只在外国注册以逃避有关雇佣和安全的规定。
• In former times, only property owners could be registered as voters. 从前，只有有财产的人才能登记作选民。

6 female   

adj.雌的，女(性)的；n.雌性的动物，女子

参考例句：

• We only employ female workers.我们只雇用女工。
• The animal in the picture was a female elephant.照片上的动物是头母象。

7 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

8 association   

n.联盟，协会，社团；交往，联合；联想

参考例句：

• Our long association with your company has brought great benefits.我方和贵公司的长期合作带来了巨大的利益。
• I broke away from the association ten years ago.我10年前就脱离了那个团体。

9 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

10 symbolize   

vt.作为...的象征，用符号代表

参考例句：

• Easter eggs symbolize the renewal of life.复活蛋象征新生。
• Dolphins symbolize the breath of life.海豚象征着生命的气息。

11 symbolizes   

v.象征，作为…的象征( symbolize的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The use of light and dark symbolizes good and evil. 用光明与黑暗来象征善与恶。
• She likes olive because It'symbolizes peace. 她喜欢橄榄色因为它象征着和平。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 bounce   

n.弹，反弹；冲劲，冲力；v.(使)弹起(跳起)

参考例句：

• She's got a lot of bounce.她浑身都是劲。
• The ball gave a high bounce.那球弹得很高。

13 rectangular   

adj.矩形的，成直角的

参考例句：

• He put a rectangular box on the table.他把一个长方形的箱子放在桌子上。
• The equations are written in rectangular coordinates.这些方程是在直角座标系中写出的。