A Graphic Journey Into the First Women’s Basketball World Cup
La Valise d’Éliane is a graphic novel that brings to life the adventure of the Swiss women’s national team during the first FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in 1953, held in Santiago, Chile.
In the context of a rapidly changing post-war world and a period marked by gender inequality, the graphic novel blends vivid illustrations with a powerful, historically grounded narrative that retraces the footsteps of Eliane Girod, one of Switzerland’s pioneering athletes.
The graphic novel draws directly from Eliane Girod’s personal diary, written during her team’s long, multi‑stop journey from Switzerland to Chile, and donated to the FIBA Museum. These invaluable tales served as the creative foundation for scriptorJacobo Rivero and illustrator Raulowsky, who transformed her meticulous notes into an immersive storytelling experience.
The three-year project was made possible thanks to Éliane, her daughter Corinne Dahan, and her grandson Joachim Dahan, who welcomed FIBA into their home and opened their hearts to share this story.
Throughout the process, several former players and National Federations provided valuable information and testimonies, which highly contributed to the creation of the story.
In an attempt to reconstruct this particular historical context, the FIBA Foundation relied on exceptional documentary material such as official programs, scoresheets, correspondence, and newspapers, covering the history of basketball at that time.
Publisher: Livreo-Alphil Co-Publisher: FIBA Foundation Author: Rivero Jacobo Illustrator: Raulowsky Publication date: 2026 Language: French N° of pages: 172