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\nWinnipeg\u2019s Settimo Yugu (right) celebrates with a teammate.<\/p>\n
While waiting for a connecting flight in Chicago, however, he received a call from Team Canada head coach Charles Hantoumakos, who re-invited the 6-9 forward to join the team\u2019s training camp a week before the tournament started.<\/p>\n
The rest, as they say, is history.<\/p>\n
Yugu made good on the second chance, becoming a player that Hantoumakos couldn\u2019t keep off the court during Canada\u2019s gold medal run, which was capped by defeating the United States 67-65 in the championship game in Le\u00f3n, Mexico.<\/p>\n
It marked Canada\u2019s first gold medal at the tournament.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe made history. Playing beside my guys, it was a crazy experience,\u201d said Yugu, who played three years at Kildonan East Collegiate and led the Reivers to the 2025 AAAA provincial championship.<\/p>\n
Canada has reached the championship game three times (2014, 2016 and 2018) \u2014 losing to the United States each time \u2014 and claimed bronze in the last two tournaments.<\/p>\n
The program was 0-9 all-time against the Americans in U18 competition entering the game.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe did make a statement,\u201d he said. \u201cThey always say Canada soft \u2014 this, that, this, that \u2014 and then we literally beat one of the best teams ever.\u201d<\/p>\n
As pivotal as Yugu was offensively for the Canadians \u2014 averaging 8.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists while making 50 per cent of his field goal attempts in 17.4 minutes of action off the bench\u2014 his biggest contribution came on the defensive end with the championship on the line.<\/p>\n
Yugu put his body on the line in the dying moments of the game, drawing an offensive foul with six seconds remaining that gave Canada possession to close out the victory.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was kind of crazy, because I never thought something like that would happen. I never like thought about taking a charge to win the game,\u201d said Yugu, who had four points and five rebounds in the contest.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was the biggest stop of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Yugu has felt the love from every corner of the city since returning to Winnipeg.<\/p>\n On Saturday, he was reminded that he was not only representing his country on the international stage, but Winnipeg\u2019s South Sudanese community, as supporters gathered to celebrate the young hoopster at the Sudanese Canadian Community Centre.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s very great, because the basketball community in Winnipeg is very big,\u201d he said. \u201cComing back home, just having people to celebrate me \u2014 ever since I got home from the airport, my aunts and my uncles come celebrate me, so it\u2019s really special.\u201d<\/p>\n Yugu has already come a long way. He was born in Lebanon, where his parents fled to in 1992 to escape their war-torn native country. He was 18-months old when they moved to Winnipeg in 2010, in search of more opportunities.<\/p>\n Their move didn\u2019t come without hard times. His mother, Silvya and dad Batista struggled to make ends meet while supporting a growing boy who grew to have big aspirations on the court. Silvya worked two jobs, and Batista worked evenings while juggling Yugu\u2019s practice schedule.<\/p>\n It was a difficult balancing act, but Yugu\u2019s parents never wavered in their support and always found a way.<\/p>\n \u201cI wouldn\u2019t be here without them,\u201d Yugu said. \u201cComing from the YMCA, playing there and having fun with my guys, and then that got more serious. It got harder for them, but they still ended up sacrificing because money was sometimes a problem, but they always found a way for me to play basketball \u2014 the thing I love.\u201d<\/p>\n Batista, who made a name for himself on the courts of South Sudan around Yugu\u2019s age, has always seen great potential in his son, who was destined to play.<\/p>\n \u201cYou will go to places I couldn\u2019t reach, because I didn\u2019t have the same opportunity in South Sudan,\u201d Batista said.<\/p>\n Batista watched the first half of every Team Canada game before going to work, then would watch the second half during his breaks and sneak in the occasional trip to the washroom just to watch his son for a few moments. During the gold medal game, he begged his supervisor for a longer break just to watch it through.<\/p>\n \u201cMy emotions were tender because I could see the team is a good team,\u201d Batista said. \u201cThat day, I was so happy. I could not sleep that (night), because the game was so tiring.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very proud. I\u2019m very proud of my son.\u201d<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Sylvia was a coach from home throughout the tournament. She called Yugu after every game to break down his successes and mistakes. That lasted until the championship game, which she watched until the score was tied at 53-53, and her nerves got the better of her.<\/p>\n She went to sleep and waited to find out the score in the morning.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m so happy, and I\u2019m so glad,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n \t\t\tThe Warm-Up<\/p>\n Winnipeg Jets Game Days<\/p>\n On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.<\/p>\n \t\t\tSign up for The Warm-Up<\/a><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t \u201cI know we are struggling, but I wish him all the best in his life. I\u2019m happy that he represented Canada, Manitoba and Winnipeg.\u201d<\/p>\n Yugu played on Bella Vista\u2019s secondary team last season but is hopeful he will be elevated to the main squad when he begins his post-graduate season in the fall.<\/p>\n He has garnered interest from 10 major NCAA Division 1 programs. Yugu\u2019s story appears to have only begun.<\/p>\n \u201c(Playing a big part in the victory made it) way more special, because I had to basically get it out of the mud,\u201d Yugu said. \u201cVery hard and very emotional gold medal.\u201d<\/p>\n winnipegfreepress.com\/joshuafreysam<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Joshua Frey-Sam Josh Frey-Sam reports on sports and business at the Free Press. Josh got his start at the paper in 2022, just weeks after graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College. He reports primarily on amateur teams and athletes in sports. Read more about Josh<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Josh produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber<\/a>.<\/p>\n Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.<\/p>\n \t\t
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\nWinnipeg\u2019s Settimo Yugu prepares to take a shot. <\/p>\n
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\nTeam Canada celebrates on the podium after beating the U.S. for the FIBA U18 Men\u2019s AmeriCup gold medal.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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