The Kremandala compound here on Partridge Street came alive this past Tuesday, July 30, as an entourage of basketball legends, fans and enthusiasts came out in full force to celebrate the anniversary of the first championship of the most successful team in Belize’s semi-pro basketball history – the Kremandala Raiders.

The Kremandala Raiders were the sub-champions in the inaugural semi-pro basketball season back in 1992. Thereafter, the Raiders set an unprecedented record by winning the championship in 7 of the next 8 semi-pro seasons beginning in 1993.

Interestingly, the team was made up of mostly young men who worked at the Amandala newspaper and had a passion for basketball. Those young men developed their skills by playing together in the now defunct U-17 Hostel Basketball tournaments before they split up to form two junior teams – AMANDALA Cream and Falcons.

Those two teams later amalgamated into the Kremandala Raiders that single-handedly dominated semi-pro basketball in the 1990s. The Raiders remain in a class of their own as arguably the most successful and exciting basketball team in the history of sports in the country.

The event presented an opportunity for several former colleagues and teammates to reunite and share good old memories while having a good time. Many of the fans who packed the City Center during the Raiders’ 9 seasons of competition were also in attendance, including some of their former opponents.

The Raiders defeated Santino’s Hotpoints in an exciting three-game series in 1993 to win their first championship.