Björn Kristjánsson (born 4 November 1992) is an Icelandic former basketball player. Over his career, he has won the Icelandic championship with KR four times and the Icelandic Basketball Cup once.
 Björn in 2015 with KR. | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | 4 November 1992 Iceland |
| Nationality | Icelandic |
| Listed height | 188 cm (6 ft 2 in) |
| Career information | |
| Playing career | 2009–2022 |
| Position | Shooting guard |
| Career history | |
| 2009–2010 | KR |
| 2010–2011 | FSu |
| 2011–2012 | KR |
| 2012 | Stjarnan |
| 2013 | ÍR |
| 2013–2014 | Breiðablik |
| 2014–2016 | KR |
| 2016–2017 | Njarðvík |
| 2017–2022 | KR |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Playing career edit
Björn came up through the junior ranks of KR where he started his senior career in 2009. After a journeyman career during his first years, where he played for five teams in 5 years, Björn returned to KR in 2014 and helped the team win back-to-back national championships.
In October 2015, he was involved in a controversy after KR's chairman accused both Njarðvík and ÍR to have approached him while he was still under contract with KR[1] which both the teams denied.[2][3] After the 2015–2016 season, Björn signed with Njarðvík.[4]
After spending the 2016–2017 season with Njarðvík, Björn returned to KR in June 2017.[5] With him, KR won its 6th consecutive national championship in 2018. During the 2019 Úrvalsdeild finals, Björn was a big catalyst in KR's victory in game four which forced a decisive game five.[6] In game 5, KR won its 7th consecutive national championship.[7]
Due to a lingering hip injury, Björn was expected to miss the start of the 2019–20 season.[8] In January 2020, KR announced that Björn would undergo a surgery and miss the rest of the season.[9] In three games, he averaged 8.0 points and 2.0 assists per game.[10]
On 22 November 2022, Björn announced his retirement from basketball due to a kidney disease that would require a kidney transplant.[11]
Personal life edit
Björn's brother is basketball player Oddur Rúnar Kristjánsson.[12]
In 2017, Björn was diagnosed with a degenerative kidney disease. In 2022, the disease had reached a stage where a kidney transplant was needed. Initially cleared to play the first half of the season, the disease limited him to two games and forcing him to announce his retirement in November 2022.[11]
References edit
- ^ Tómas Þór Þórðarson (30 October 2015). "Njarðvík og ÍR ræddu við Björn án leyfis: "Þetta er bara óvirðing"". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ Eiríkur Stefán Ásgeirsson (30 October 2015). "Teitur: Enginn frá Njarðvík hafði samband við Björn í vikunni". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ Ingvi Þór Sæmundsson (31 October 2015). "ÍR-ingar segjast ekki hafa rætt við Björn". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ "Björn yfirgefur KR fyrir Njarðvík". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 15 May 2016. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ "Björn og Kristófer spila með KR í vetur". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 21 June 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ Guðmundur Hilmarsson (2 May 2019). "Ég hreinlega trúi því ekki". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ Ástrós Ýr Eggertsdóttir (4 May 2019). "Umfjöllun: KR - ÍR 98-70 - KR Íslandsmeistari sjötta árið í röð". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ Runólfur Trausti Þórhallsson (20 October 2019). "Óvíst hvenær Björn snýr aftur". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ Hjörvar Ólafsson (5 January 2020). "Björn leikur ekki meira á tímabilinu". Fréttablaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 5 January 2020.
- ^ Ingvi Þór Sæmundsson (6 January 2020). "Björn frá út tímabilið og Jakob með brjósklos". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 6 January 2020.
- ^ a b Sindri Sverrisson (22 November 2022). "Björn fær nýra úr mömmu: „Vissi að þetta yrði endastöðin"". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (28 January 2016). "Tapar litli bróðir níunda leiknum í röð?". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 20 October 2019.