BENGALURU : India are nowhere among the elite Asian teams in basketball. It will take years of dedication and discipline to compete against top teams. However, as hosts of some basketball events, the country has been earning some laurels. The Basketball Federation of India (BFI), led by K Govindaraj, has come for some praise from several quarters including International Basketball Federation (FIBA) secretary general, Andreas Zagklis.
In the last two years or so, India has hosted several FIBA Asia women competitions such as Asia Cup and Asia U-16 Championship in 2017 and the Asia U-18 Championship in 2018. With these events hosted without any glitch, there are high hopes that FIBA will grant bigger competitions to India.
“We have come to know that we have a good team around Govindaraj, who are capable of organising events. This has been proven more than once at the level of FIBA Asia. We are of the opinion that gradually the organizational capacity of this national federation here grows and, yes, I do believe that the BFI in the near future could be a real candidate for both men and women events at the Asian, and in the mid-term also the world level,” said Zagklis, who was present in the city to attend the FIBA Asia Cup 2021 qualifiers draw along with the general assembly of FIBA Asia.
Zagklis was also intimate on the foundations required for the growth of basketball. “For basketball in a country to grow, you need two strong pillars, you need a national team and national league. These are the two pillars on the basis of which we encourage the federations to build their work.
The specific decision on the formation of the format and the model of the league are the decisions that need to be taken by the board of the federations. Here we have a board of 20 members in this country (India), a very capable board, who know the situation on the ground. We as international leaders have the role of empowering the leaders in the country to take the right decisions,” added Zagklis.
Govindaraj elected
BFI president K Govindaraj has been elected as a member of the Central Board of FIBA Asia at the General Assembly of the member federations in Bengaluru on Sunday. Sheikh Saud Ali Al Thani was re-elected as president of FIBA Asia for a third term.