The inspiring story of a true Sole Survivor: a hero without cape

MIES (Switzerland) - Gary Forbes faced death and made history in basketball. A truly inspiring life with a mission: build a legacy to help. His excellent comic book is the beginning of something promising.

Many near-death experiences, two diabetic comas, 6 knee surgeries, countless doctors, nurses, and even family members telling him to give up his dream of playing basketball. Nothing stopped Forbes from reaching his goals: “I developed an "I can do it mentality” and an optimistic mindset to face challenges through work and became one of the three players in all NBA history to have played with diabetes”.

Basketball was everything to him, and now it is his most powerful and inspiring tool to change young kids' lives very much in line with the Basketball For Good mission of using basketball to make a positive impact on communities around the world.  Since he was born in Panama (1985) he's been quite a basketball journeyman playing all around the world (US, Philippines, Venezuela, Italy, Israel, Puerto Rico, Greece, Arabia, Vietnam...) and shined with the National Team averaging 17.8 and 16.6 in FIBA Americas Championship Olympic Qualifying Tournament in 2007 and 2011. Later on, he would still lead Panama in 2017 with 13 points in 2017 AmeriCup before his last tournament with the National Team in 2019. So many stories, so many life learnings that helped him to become the man he is today.

“Basketball has taught me so much. Team work and dedication shaped me into the person I am… I don’t know what I would be doing if I hadn’t fell in love with basketball”

 
A true role model for many, not just on the court, but also in daily life as he was an ambassador for kids with diabetes and an example of overcoming difficulties. A hero with no cape but with an amazing story to be told and a brilliant legacy to help others. This was the spark of the Sole Survivors project. Something he had in the back of his head towards the end of his career around 2017 and has become the first volume of an amazing comic book collection.

“I started thinking what legacy, what powerful story I could leave behind and I decided to use my diseases to show you can overcome any difficulties. An easy transition would be basketball but I felt that my purpose in life was to do something more, I wanted to leave a legacy and change the narrative. So I decided to use this part of the diseases and my childhood imagination. I was always into comic books and cartoons and decided to create these superheroes that go through health challenges such as diabetes, mental health issues, cancer or autism, and are able to overcome them and save the galaxy in the Sole Survivors series I developed. I can relate because I’ve been in that position, I had my fair share of bad experiences”, explains Forbes.

The first launched volume is already changing children's lives. “I get many DM’s from parents of kids with health challenges thanking me for being a voice and being able to change the narrative. During a reading, a girl said she had been diagnosed with THD and also maybe autism, she gave me a hug and told me “Thank you, I feel like a superhero. I feel good, I’m not afraid of others”. This gave me a smile. If I can help one person, I’ve done my job on earth. But I want to impact so many others and inspire many to do more than they can”, said Forbes with emotion.

This first volume is the beginning of a bigger project. “With Sole Survivors my dreams and goals are very big, I see a long-running series, toys, clothing, partnership with hospitals, events, podcasts, movies, videogames, and metaverse, so kids in different parts of the world with the same health challenge can talk and support each other. The ultimate goal would be an all-inclusive theme park with medical staff, food, and entertainment, so not only kids will feel safe but also parents will forget the daily struggle of dealing with the situation”.

Having faced death and overcoming so many obstacles in life led him to cherish every single moment in life, Forbes doesn’t take anything for granted and won’t accept a “no” as an answer. “My name wasn’t called during the NBA Draft but I feel like the release of the book was my Draft day. The best part of Sole Survivors will be the day that no book is needed”, said Forbes.

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The FIBA Foundation is the social and legacy arm of FIBA that addresses the role of sports and particularly basketball in society, preserving and promoting basketball’s values and its cultural heritage.

The FIBA Foundation believes that basketball has the power to empower, educate and inspire youth and facilitates this by implementing Basketball For Good projects around the world.

FIBA