The Boomers

From heartbreak to triumph: how our national basketball team went from misfits to superstars

The Boomers' Olympic triumph in Tokyo was possibly the most celebrated bronze medal in Australian sporting history. But the path to this moment is littered with heartache, setback and adversity.

The long and arduous journey was recalled by Boomers' leading scorer and five-time Olympian, Andrew Gaze, on Channel 7's Olympic coverage that day, as he held back tears and paid tribute to the champions of the moment and to the pioneers of the past.

Over six decades, countless basketball players and officials have invested immeasurable hours to bring basketball in this country to the point where we now have more than a million registered players and an Olympic medal-winning team. Not least among these dedicated servants to the game was Andrew Gaze's father, Lindsay.

In this unauthorised biography of our national team, Matt Logue goes back to the...