Nicolas Batum, who plays for the Portland Trail Blazers of the NBA, is the sponsor of the fourth edition of Run Ball. Having arrived on Réunion a few days ago, the basketball player has already had the opportunity to discover the island of Réunion from the sky.
Nicolas Batum set foot on the heliport tarmac with a big smile on his face. Encouraged by the sponsor of Run Ball 2013, Tony Parker, the sportsman accepted the invitation extended by the Run Ball organisers. Run Ball is the basketball event of the year on the island.
“I did Hawaii in a helicopter – Réunion is far more impressive”, said Nicolas Batum.
“Stunning!” said Nicolas Batum when getting out of the helicopter. He will never forget this flight over Réunion: “I literally stood up in the cabin when we arrived above Mafate!”, said the 2.03 metre-tall basketball player.
As sponsor of Run Ball 2014, Nicolas Batum has also gone to meet the Réunionnais basketball players at the Run Ball training camp. For him, “among the young players of Réunion, there are some very good ones. There is a lot of potential on Réunion”. The coach of the France 3×3 team and director of the Centre Fédéral de Basket-Ball (CFBB), Richard Billant, also took part in the trip. “On Réunion, you see landscapes that are not found anywhere else […] if I were to compare it, it’s like the Grand Canyon – indescribable”, the French coach said with enthusiasm. With a full schedule dedicated to training young players at the Run Ball Camps in Le Tampon, Nicolas Batum and Richard Billant have not had the chance to set out to explore the island. This oversight should be corrected before next year, with holidays on the island of Réunion pencilled in on the schedule for the future leader of the French team at the World Cup in Spain and the French coach.