26th March, 2012
Federation of International Basketball Association, FIBA, has officially announced the first ever FIBA 3×3 World Tour to be held in some of the world’s most iconic cities.
The 2012 calendar of 3×3 basketball events also includes senior and U18 World Cups for men and women. FIBA Secretary General and IOC Member, Patrick Baumann, shared his enthusiasm: “The first edition of the FIBA 3×3 World Tour and the first-ever FIBA 3×3 World Cup are two key landmarks in the development of the game, which we see as a future Olympic discipline. 2012 is going to be remembered as the year when 3×3 basketball was launched.”
The FIBA 3×3 World Tour will see men’s teams from around the world qualify for five Masters tournaments, each comprising 16 teams and held in some of the world’s most cosmopolitan cities.
The schedule of the five Masters tournaments is as follows, Sao Paulo, Brazil: 7-8 July, Vladivostok, Russia: 21-22 July, New York, USA: 18-19 August, Istanbul, Turkey: 1-2 September and Madrid, Spain: 8-9 September, 2011.
The 16 best teams from the Masters qualify for the FIBA 3×3 World Tour Final, which will be held in Miami, USA, on 22-23 September.
The inaugural FIBA 3×3 World Cup, for Men and Women respectively, will take place in Athens, Greece, on 23-26 August, while the second FIBA 3×3 U18 World Cup will take place in Seville, Spain, on 27-30 September.
Boys and girls born after 1 January 1994 will be eligible to compete for their respective National Teams. The inaugural FIBA 3×3 U18 World Cup was played in Rimini, Italy in 2011.
—Bamidele Olowosagba