Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti has said he agrees “100%” with Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo’s viral claim there is “no failure in sports.”
The power forward’s passionate answer in response to a news conference question on whether their season had been a failure went viral after his team’s elimination from the NBA playoffs by the Miami Heat.
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“It’s not a failure, it’s a step to success,” Antetokounmpo, an NBA champion and finals MVP in 2021, and a seven-time NBA All-Star, said on Wednesday.
“Michael Jordan played for 15 years and won six championships. Were the other nine years a failure? It’s the wrong question. There’s no failure in sports.”
Ancelotti praised the NBA star for his comments, saying in a news conference on Monday: “What Antetokounmpo said was fantastic. I think in 100% the same way as him.
“In sport you can’t talk about failure, and in life you can’t talk about failure. Failure is when you don’t try to do something as well as you can. When you try to do your best, you have a clear conscience, and that’s never a failure, not just in sport but in life.”
Madrid look certain to miss out on this season’s LaLiga title, trailing leaders Barcelona by 11 points with six games remaining.