BASKETBALL – BAHRAIN is set to host this year’s edition of the Gulf U16 Basketball Championship.
This was confirmed yesterday by the Bahrain Basketball Association (BBA), who revealed that all six GCC nations are taking part in the event, scheduled for July 7 to 12.
The competition acts as a qualifier for this year’s Fiba Asia U16 Championship, to be held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
The field has been divided into two groups. Qatar, Kuwait, and the UAE are in Group A, while Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain are in Group B.
Games will be held at the BBA Arena in Um Al Hassam, and play will begin with a preliminary round, to be followed by the knockouts.
On opening night on July 7, Qatar take on Kuwait at 5pm, to be followed at 7.30pm by Bahrain facing Oman. The following day, the UAE and Qatar face off at 5pm, while Oman and Saudi battle at 7.30pm. The tournament’s opening phase then wraps up on July 9, with Kuwait taking on the UAE at 5pm, to be followed by Saudi and Bahrain clashing at 7.30pm.
Following a rest day on July 10, the semi-finals will be held the following. The Group A winners will face the Group B runners-up, while the Group A runners-up will take on the Group B winners.
The gold and bronze medal games will then be held on the championship’s final day on July 12.
Bahrain finished third in the previous edition of the Gulf U16 event, which was held in 2023 in Jeddah in Saudi. They did not earn a berth in the Fiba Asia U16 Championship with their standings, but eventually received a qualifying ticket to participate after receiving a letter of invitation from Fiba Asia.
The nationals went on to mark their fifth appearance in the 16-nation continental tournament, which was held in Doha, although they bowed out in the group stage after losing all three of their games.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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