VEF Rīga brings in Zībarts and Gailītis as assistant coaches for Kosuškins

Latvian basketball club VEF Rīga has announced the addition of two experienced coaches to serve as assistants to head coach Jevgenijs Kosuškins. The team had a poor previous season, losing all three domestic titles won a year earlier. For the first time since 2009, VEF Rīga failed to reach the Latvian Basketball League final and also missed out on bronze. In the Champions League, the team finished last in its group. After Mārtiņš Gulbis stepped down, the club promoted long-time assistant Jevgenijs Kosuškins to head coach. Kosuškins had been an assistant since 2013 but has only one season of head coaching experience (with Jūrmala/Fēnikss). To bolster his staff, the management brought in two seasoned assistants.

The first assistant is 52-year-old Mārtiņš Zībarts, who last season coached the Polish women's team VBW Gdynia. He previously led TTT Rīga and won the Greek championship with Olympiacos women's team. In men's basketball, Zībarts has worked with Barons, Latvijas Universitāte, and Ventspils coaching staffs. Zībarts said that after nine seasons abroad, the opportunity to return home and be part of VEF Rīga, a leading regional club, is rare and meaningful. He expressed pride in joining an organization with high goals and a winning mentality.

The second assistant is 44-year-old Gunārs Gailītis, who last season served as an assistant to Kaspars Vecvagars at Valmiera Glass/ViA, helping the team win the Latvian Cup, the Latvian-Estonian league title, and the LBL gold medals. Gailītis spent many years at Latvijas Universitāte as an assistant and head coach, and also had a season with Jēkabpils. He noted that VEF Rīga has long been an organization with high standards and a strong work ethic, and he is happy to return to his home in Rīga.

Both coaches have officially joined the club and will begin preparations for the upcoming season.