QBF all set to host FIBA U-16 Asian Championship

DOHA – The Qatar Basketball Federation (QBF) has unveiled all technical and organizational measures of the prestigious FIBA U-16 Asian Championship during a press conference held Steigenberger Hotel Doha at on Saturday.

This championship will begin on Sunday At Al Gharafa Indoor Hall and will last until June 19. It brings together 13 teams are pooled into four groups.

Qatar’s young basketball players will face off against the continent’s best in the coming week when the FIBA U-16 Asian Championship gets underway at the Al Gharafa Indoor Hall on Sunday.

The home team takes on Bahrain in their opening match and then has to contend with defending champions Australia, and India in the four-team Group A.

Coach Yasir Ahmed said the competition presented a tough challenge but his players hoped to benefit from the intense preparation since April.

“We’ve trained together for the last two months and played five friendly matches in the last week. The players have shown good cohesion and we’ll give off our best to go as far as we can,” he said.

As regards the group matches, he said, “We know about Bahrain as we’ve played them before in a GCC tournament and we’re prepared. India and Australia are good teams for sure but we’re ready for the challenge.”

Ahmed also hoped to capitalise on the home advantage. “The tournament is being played on our court and we’ll have plenty of support from family and friends and that’ll work to our advantage,” he said.

China, three-time champions since the tournament began in 2009, are not participating this year. South Korea, winners in 2015, are in Group D with New Zealand and Kazakhstan.

The 13 teams in the competition have been divided into four groups. Apart from Qatar’s cluster, the remaining groups feature three teams each. The group toppers progress directly to the quarterfinals while the second and third placed teams face off in a cross-over format to decide the remaining four last-eight teams.

Source: Qatar Olympic Committee