Finnish coach Anton Mirolybov suffered two blood clots this summer

Anton Mirolybov had spent only a few weeks enjoying the Finnish summer when a medical emergency changed his plans.

“I got blood clots in both lungs,” Mirolybov said of what happened in July. He had previously battled bowel cancer and undergone harsh chemotherapy, which he said brought difficult side effects.

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I got blood clots in both lungs.

After leaving hospital, Mirolybov had to remain at home and rest. On Thursday, he finally returned to a basketball arena to watch Finland’s national team play Sweden, taking a seat in the wheelchair section. “Fortunately, they managed to arrange a place in the wheelchair section,” he said.

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Fortunately, they managed to arrange a place in the wheelchair section.

Mirolybov has continued coaching through serious illnesses. Most recently, he led Estonia’s BC Kalev/Cramo, which lost the Estonian league finals to Tartu. He also coached in several German divisions and guided Gmunden to the Austrian championship, Super Cup and Austrian Cup in the 2022-23 season.

Now, however, he says that path has ended. “The coaching has now been coached, and I’m not going down that road anymore,” the 49-year-old said.

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The coaching has now been coached, and I’m not going down that road anymore.

Mirolybov also assessed Estonia ahead of its game against Finland. He described the team as physical, quick and heavily reliant on ball screens. He praised head coach Heiko Rannula and identified Kristian Kullamäe, Kasper Suurorg and Maik-Kalev Kotsar as Estonia’s strongest players. Estonia’s basketball tradition remains strong, he said, with national team home games sold out during the November 2025 and February 2026 international windows.

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Estonia is a physical team that aims to play fast and exploit ball screens as much as possible.