Berglind Gunnarsdóttir

Berglind Lára Gunnarsdóttir (born 17 February 1993) is an Icelandic basketball coach and former player who played 26 games for the Icelandic national basketball team. She spent her entire playing career with Snæfell where she won three straight national championships from 2014 to 2016 and the Icelandic Basketball Cup in 2016. In 2017, she was named to the Úrvalsdeild Domestic All-First Team.

This is an Icelandic name. The last name is patronymic, not a family name; this person is referred to by the given name Berglind.
Berglind Gunnarsdóttir
Personal information
Born (1993-02-17) 17 February 1993
NationalityIcelandic
Listed height175 cm (5 ft 9 in)
Career information
Playing career2007–2020
PositionGuard
Number11
Coaching career2021–present
Career history
As player:
2007–2020Snæfell
As coach:
2021–2022Valur (assistant)
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Women's basketball
Representing  Iceland
Games of the Small States of Europe
Silver medal – second place2015 ReykjavíkTeam
Silver medal – second place2017 San MarinoTeam
Silver medal – second place2019 BarTeam

Career

First years

Berglind came up through the junior ranks of Snæfell, playing her first senior match during the 2007–2008 season in the second-tier 1. deild kvenna where she helped the club to a perfect 16-0 season and a promotion to the top-tier Úrvalsdeild kvenna.[1]

Injuries plagued her next few seasons, she tore a cruciate ligament in her knee which required two operations and during the 2012–2013 season she repeatedly dislocated her shoulder after having initially injured it during the summer.[2]

Snæfell's rise to the top

Berglind helped Snæfell reach the Icelandic Cup finals in 2014 but missed the game due to a knee injury.[3] Without her, Snæfell lost 70-78 to Haukar.[4] On April 6, she helped Snæfell win its first ever women's national championship after sweeping Haukar 3-0 in the Úrvalsdeild finals.[5]

She won the national championship with Snæfell again in 2015, playing in all but one of Snæfell's games during the playoffs despite dislocating her shoulder in the semi-finals and again in the finals.[6][7][8] In 2016, Snæfell won the championship for the third year in a row, beating Haukar 3-1 in the finals. She had 11 points and 4 rebounds in the title clinching game.[9]

Berglind had a breakout season in 2016–2017,[10] averaging 11.6 points and 5.3 rebounds and being named to the Úrvalsdeild kvenna Domestic All-First Team.[11] She helped Snæfell post the best record during the regular season[12] and once again make it to the Úrvalsdeild finals against Keflavík. In the finals, Keflavík proved to be to strong and won 3-1.[13][14]

On December 10, 2017, she scored the game winning layup, after rebounding her own miss, at the buzzer to beat Valur in the final eight of the Basketball Cup.[15][16] On February 28, 2018, Berglind dislocated her shoulder once again in a loss against Keflavík.[17] In 26 games, she averaged 8.3 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.

Accident

After participating with the national team at the 2019 Games of the Small States of Europe in May 2019, Berglind underwent a surgery on her troublesome shoulder and was expected to miss the first half of the 2019–20 season.[18] Shortly before her expected return, on 10 January 2020, she was involved in a serious accident after a bus she was traveling in, along with more than 40 college students, slid off the road in icy conditions and landed upside down. In the accident, she suffered serious neck and spinal injuries, leaving her partially paralyzed.[19][20] In August 2020, she had regained the use of her legs.[21]

National team career

Berglind was first selected to the Icelandic national basketball team in 2015[22] and in total she played 26 games for the team.[23] She was selected to the national team for the EuroBasket Women 2017 qualification where Iceland finished third in its group.[24] In November 2017 she was selected to the team for the EuroBasket Women 2019 qualification.[25] In May 2019 she participated at the 2019 Games of the Small States of Europe where Iceland finished in second place.

Coaching career

In August 2021, Berglind was hired as an assistant coach by reigning Úrvalsdeild kvenna champions Valur.[26]

Personal life

Berglind's sister is basketball player Gunnhildur Gunnarsdóttir, who played for Snæfell and the Icelandic national team.[27]

In February 2021, Berglind worked as an analyst on the basketball postgame show Domino's Körfuboltakvöld.[28]

Awards, titles and accomplishments

Individual awards

Titles

Accomplishments
  • Icelandic All-Star game: 2011

References
  1. Sindri Sverrisson (8 November 2017). "Margir héldu að þetta gæti ekki gengið". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 9 November 2017.
  2. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (13 February 2013). "Ein óheppnasta körfuboltakona landsins". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 10 December 2017.
  3. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (20 February 2014). "Systurnar fá ekki að slást". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  4. Kristján Jónsson (22 February 2014). "Haukar bikarmeistarar - Hardy með 44 stig". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  5. Skúli Unnar Sveinsson (6 April 2014). "Snæfell Íslandsmeistari í fyrsta sinn". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  6. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (30 April 2015). "Kevin Love úr axlarlið og úr leik en ekki Berglind". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  7. Eiríkur Stefán Ásgeirsson (27 April 2015). "Umfjöllun og viðtöl: Snæfell - Keflavík 81-80 - Snæfell Íslandsmeistari 2015". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  8. Haukur Harðarson (12 January 2016). "Eina leiðin til að vera með lið í Hólminum". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  9. Hjörvar Ólafsson (26 April 2016). "Snæfell Íslandsmeistari". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  10. Ingvi Þór Sæmundsson (13 November 2016). "Körfuboltakvöld: Berglind nýtur þess að spila með nýja Kananum". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 10 December 2017.
  11. "Lokahóf KKÍ 2017 - Thelma Dís og Jón Arnór valin best". Icelandic Basketball Federation (in Icelandic). Retrieved 10 December 2017.
  12. Kjartan Atli Kjartansson (20 March 2017). "Berglind: Eigum einn gír inni". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  13. Tómas Þór Þórðarson (26 April 2017). "Umfjöllun og viðtöl: Keflavík - Snæfell 70-50 - Keflvíkingar Íslandsmeistarar í sextánda sinn". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  14. Kristján Jónsson (26 April 2017). "Keflavík Íslandsmeistari kvenna í körfuknattleik". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  15. Ástrós Ýr Eggertsdóttir (10 December 2017). "Snæfell fer í undanúrslit eftir hörkuspennu í Stykkishólmi". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 10 December 2017.
  16. Andri Yrkill Valsson (11 December 2017). "Horfðum á boltann leka ofan í". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  17. Skúli B. Sigurðsson (28 February 2018). "Berglind fór alvarlega úr axlarlið". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  18. Valur Páll Eiríksson (1 February 2020). "Mestu máli skipti þó að ég var á lífi". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  19. Kolbeinn Tumi Daðason (1 February 2020). "Landsliðskona á langan bata fyrir höndum eftir rútuslysið nærri Blönduósi". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  20. Sylvía Hall (10 January 2020). "Á fimmta tug háskólanema í rútunni sem valt". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  21. Runólfur Trausti Þórhallsson; Svava Kristín Gretarsdóttir (19 August 2020). "Sagði það ekki góða tilfinningu að vita að hún væri lömuð fyrir neðan axlir". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  22. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (18 November 2015). "Tveir nýliðar fara með til Ungverjalands". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  23. "KKÍ | A landslið". kki.is. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  24. Brynjar Ingi Erluson (23 November 2016). "Varnarleikurinn var lykilatriði í dag". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  25. Hans Steinar Bjarnason (27 October 2017). "Landsliðshópur valinn fyrir undankeppni EM". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  26. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (10 August 2021). "Berglind Gunnars er nýr aðstoðarþjálfari Íslandsmeistara Vals". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 10 August 2021.
  27. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (19 November 2015). "Fjórar systur á leið með landsliðinu til Ungverjalands". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  28. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (18 February 2021). "Berglind og Ólöf Helga eru nýir sérfræðingar Körfuboltakvölds". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 19 June 2021.
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