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November 7, 2022 was a sad day for all of Spanish basketball. Pilar Valero died at the age of 52 in her native Zaragoza, leaving Aragonese sport orphaned, losing a pioneer and a true reference. I remember her, however, she is still alive in the streets of the capital city. Her shirt, with the number 4 on the back, has been hanging at the top of the Príncipe Felipe Pavilion (next to Fernando Arcega’s) since last March, when the Queen’s Cup was played there, and Boys and girls can emulate her on a track that bears her name in the Parque Bruil in the Aragonese town..
Zaragozana even in the name (Pilar as the patron saint and Valero as the boss), talent emerged in spurts in her case, because even though she discovered basketball late (she started playing because a friend convinced her at 15 years old) In a short time she debuted in the Spanish elite to become an icon of national women’s basketball. She was 18 years old when she debuted in the Women’s League and at 19 she won the Queen’s Cup with Banco Zaragoza (1990) before packing her bags to go to Valencia, where she was part of the almighty Dorna Godella, with which she won two more Cups, its first three Leagues and, above all, the 1993 European Cup.
He also played for Pool Getafe, Banco Simeón de Vigo, the other team where he left an indelible mark, Burgos, Mann Filter and Islas Canarias, but In 2010 he had to end his career after two back operations. Although his relationship with basketball did not end there either; He was part of the Celta and Mann Filter coaching staff and also won a U-17 world silver medal as Víctor Lapeña’s assistant in 2012, in a team that included Leti Romero, Laura Quevedo, Nogaye Lo…
Despite his extensive record (6 Leagues, 5 Cups and a European Cup), the best memory he had of his professional career was promotion to Honor Division with Zaragoza Women’s Basketball, before professionalization, when they were a group of friends who were united by a passion: basketball. “She was that player that everyone wanted to have on their team, the real glue and a permanent smile that helped a lot in difficult moments.“, explained Elisa Aguilar in 2021, who shared the Selection with her, when a delegation made up of her teammates in the Perugia gold medal and the Federation gave her the ball and the insignia that accredited that she had entered the first promotion of the Hall of Fame as member of the best team.
She was that player that everyone wanted on their team, the glue and a permanent smile that helped a lot in difficult moments.
Elisa Aguilar
With Spain he played 106 games in two World Cups (1994 and 1998) and three European Championships., including the one in which Spain bathed in gold for the first time, Perugia in 1993. On the court he did damage with his intensity and speed and off it, he won over everyone with his empathy and his eternal smile. Cristina Cantero, Celta’s coach today, remembered her like this after her death. “He gave the impression that he was interested in everyone and had a big heart”. And she said it with full knowledge. Cantero called Valero to ask for her advice because they were going to have surgery on her back. Although they did not know each other, Pilar went to visit her at the hospital to see how she was doing.
Faithful to popular races, It was not strange to see her running through the Zaragoza Canal after her retirement. She was runner-up in the Vigo Half Marathon one day after becoming League champion and was about to run the New York marathon in 2012. The best player in the history of Aragón left us soon, but her legacy will last forever.