Aina Ayuso
The grit of the national team
The Spanish women’s national basketball team comes to the EuroBasket (19th-29th of June) with many fresh faces. One of them is Aina Ayuso, who has recently been selected as the best Spanish player in the Liga Femenina. Despite the injuries of María Conde, Laura Quevedo, Nerea Hermosa, Megan Gustafson or Maite Cazorla, this Catalan point guard believes that Spain’s everlasting competitive gene allows them to reach the top of the podium.
This century, the Spanish women’s national basketball team has stepped onto the podium at ten of the twelve EuroBasket championships played—three golds (2013, 2017, 2019), two silvers (2007, 2023) and five bronze medals (2001, 2003, 2005, 2009, 2015)—and is not even considering stepping down at the next tournament, which is held from the 19th to the 29th of June in the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece and Italy. Aina Ayuso (Sant Just Desvern, 1999) explains: “Spain is a team that always aims for the top, even though we’re in the middle of generational changes and there are many new faces. The goal is always the same: to win all our matches.” Something they have achieved during their pre-tournament friendly matches after beating Greece (64-40), Italy (57-42), Portugal (68-59) and Switzerland (94-64). According to Aina, the younger players share two key aspects with the veterans: grit and talent. “Grit is written in the DNA of Spanish basketball. We’re able to always stay in the game and fight until the end. Apart from that, there’s a lot of talent, people who have the audacity to compete against anyone. We bring together youth and experience, a very positive combination.”
A competitive streak that the Spanish Basketball Federation (FEB), an entity supported by Iberia, works on starting with the junior categories and that, Aina admits, is inherited from one generation to the next. “The key is to always reach the end of matches with chances of winning. Knowing how to compete is part of the national team’s character, and it is reflected both in their junior years and the senior level. This is something that people outside of Spain also recognize.” To that competitive gene, Aina adds another intangible element that isn’t reflected in the statistics: “My greatest satisfaction is for the team to work well, and I always try to get to know and better understand each of my teammates because we’re all quite different. This work is invisible, but during important moments it gives good results. I want people to feel good and, statistics aside, that’s what’s most important.”
“Spain is a team that always aims for the top, even though we’re in the middle of generational changes and there are many new faces”
Aina is a point guard who can do so many things on the court, from those typical of her position—scoring, assisting, or stealing the ball—to others more typical of a centre, like rebounding. In fact, last season she was the second-best rebounder on her team, Hozono Global Jairis, averaging 5.4 rebounds. Individually, Aina has just finished a spectacular season: MVP of the Copa de la Reina, the best Spanish player in the Liga Femenina—beating her national teammates Iyana Martín and Awa Fam—and member of the All-League Team. For this reason, we asked her if she feels the pressure of taking on more responsibility this EuroBasket: “I think the season is one thing and the national team is another… I don’t feel pressure, on the contrary, I enjoy myself immensely. I’m excited for the competition to start and whatever happens, I’ll receive it with open arms.”
Building talent
They say, “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree” and in Aina’s case, this is true because basketball runs in her blood. Her father, Josep María Ayuso, was also a point guard and played in teams like TDK Manresa at the end of the 1980s. “I love it when people say we look alike—Aina confesses—. When my father talks about his career, he’s completely down-to-earth and there’s no ego involved. The best thing I’ve inherited from him is the serenity to do what I like, however I like, whenever I like. My mother too. They both know me very well, and they know that I’m an extremely competitive and demanding person, and they’ve known how to give me that balance.” When we talk about her talent, Aina detracts from her accomplishments to award them to her parents: “I believe talent is innate, and I owe it to life, to my parents. But working both physically and mentally over time is what allows you to develop it.”
“I believe talent is innate, and I owe it to life, to my parents. But working both physically and mentally over time is what allows you to develop it”
Aina also learnt a lot at Segle XXI, the main Spanish basketball talent factory. Some of her national teammates have also been there, like Alba Torrens, Paula Ginzo, or Andrea Vilaró. When we ask her what they do well, Aina doesn’t hesitate: “So many things.” And she adds: “The first thing they do well is to choose which players go. They select four, five or six per generation, and I was one of them. When I was selected, I didn’t stand out much yet, and it was Ramón Jordana who came to get me. There, you grow, and your character takes shape. I was also taught how to know my body, how to listen to myself, understand myself, and work my body physically. And they taught me how to enjoy myself because that’s what basketball is about in the end.”
Knowing her body so well has helped Aina achieve a physical fitness that, now that she has matured, gives her an edge. “I’ve been working on my body for years, and I’m really starting to notice it,” she confirms. Having that wisdom has helped her training as a physiotherapist—her mother’s specialization—, she admits: “When you do this much sport, it’s inevitable to experience pain, and you need to know your limits. Physiotherapy helps me to better understand it.” Another aspect that helped Aina to grow was travelling outside of Spain, first to the United States to play for the Oregon Ducks (2017) and then to Greece, with Olympiacos (2022). “Playing abroad is something I always wanted to do, and I think everyone should be the foreign player on a team at some point. The pressure and responsibilities are different, and it helped me grow. Greece was an incredibly positive experience.” Thanks to that maturity, Aina is ready to take a step forward with the Spanish national team.
