BASKETBALL – RIFFA are set to fly the kingdom’s flag when this year’s Fiba 3x3 World Tour makes its highly anticipated stop in Bahrain this November 1 and 2 for the Manama Masters – an exciting showcase of top-class street basketball.
The 14-team field for the prestigious event has been confirmed by Fiba. Riffa are the second seeds and will be looking to defend home court.
The number one seeds are Paris from France, while seeded third through 14th, respectively, are Raudondvaris Hoptrans of Lithuania, Lausanne of Switzerland, Liman of Serbia, Ulaanbaatar MMC Energy of Mongolia, Hangzhou and Chongming of China, Podgorica Kodio of Montenegro, Barcelona of Spain, Sagamihara Enndaruma of Japan, Shanghai JUSS of China, Al Wakrah of Qatar, and Orlando of the US.
Riffa’s team members this season have included Dennis Donkor, Jonas Foerts, Caspar Augustijnen, Thibaut Vervoort, and Vic Van Oosterwyck. The quartet for the Manama Masters has yet to be confirmed.
The competition will be taking place at a special venue located at Bahrain Financial Harbour in the heart of the Bahraini capital.
The Manama Masters will be taking place for the second consecutive year, and it will be the 14th stop on this year’s Fiba 3x3 World Tour, which features 17 events, including the series finale in Hong Kong at the end of November.
Bahrain is one of three destinations in the Gulf on this year’s Fiba 3x3 World Tour calendar. The others are Abu Dhabi, the UAE, taking place right before the Manama Masters on October 26 and 27, and Neom in Saudi Arabia, scheduled for the week after Bahrain from November 7 to 9.
In last year’s inaugural edition of the kingdom’s event, Partizan from Serbia were crowned champions. They defeated Antwerp TOPdesk from Belgium, who are now Riffa.
Meanwhile, there will once again be a women’s competition as part of the 3x3 festivities, the Bahrain Basketball Association confirmed yesterday.
The kingdom will be represented by the Al Zallaq team, to be coached by renowned Bahraini basketball tactician Murtadha Mohammed. The team’s roster has yet to be confirmed.
Last year, Bahrain’s representatives Manama narrowly missed out on the women’s gold medals after losing to Doha Expo from Qatar in their final. The Manama squad was composed of Hessa Al Jaber, Marian Samir, and professional players Julia Jorritsma and Loyce Bettonvil.
Aside from the men’s and women’s 3x3 competitions, there will also be a dunk contest and shoot-out as part of the Manama Masters’ two-day programme.
Bahrain’s hosting of the Fiba 3x3 World Tour had come to fruition following the efforts of Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) vice-president Shaikh Isa bin Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, through his communication and prominent relations with Fiba.
In September of 2022, the BOC signed an agreement with Fiba to host the Fiba 3x3 World Tour. Shaikh Isa penned the deal with Fiba 3x3 head of events Ignacio Soriano.
The Fiba 3x3 World Tour is an international tour of 3x3 basketball teams representing cities from across the globe. It holds events all over the world throughout the calendar year, featuring many of 3x3 basketball’s most skilled players.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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