Manila Philippines
FIBA 2015 News: Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP): sends letter of intent to FIBA to qualify as host of the 2016 Olympic Qualifying Tournament Basketball scheduled for July 4 to 10 next year.
Beating the October 19 deadline for participating countries, Pilipinas Basketball goal is to become one of the three (3) hosts for the wildcard joust which will have 18 basketball teams divided into three brackets with the victors from each bracket qualifying for the 2016 Rio Olympics in Rio de Janeiro Brazil from August 5 to 21.
The other nations that have signified interest to host include Serbia, Russia, Germany, Turkey, Mexico, Canada and Italy.
The date for awarding of hosting rights happens on the 23rd of November with FIBA executive committee making the final decision. Consequently, the geographical draw and team distributions is scheduled on the next day, November 24.
The Philippine Basketball Team automatically earned a slot in the Olympic Qualifying Tournaments after placing second in FIBA Asia Championship 2015.
The other qualifiers include Iran, Japan, New Zealand, Senegal, Tunisia, Puerto Rico, Angola, Canada, Mexico, Czech Republic, Italy, Serbia, Greece and France.
Raring to get a competitive team with a 17-man PBA pool, and the addition of Jordan Clarkson and Andray Blatche, Philippines will try to get the most advantage by being one of the hosts, to ensure homecourt and the Filipino crowd support.
