It's been more than three decades since the last time the Philippines hosted two major international basketball events.
And this is the reason why the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas is dead serious in bringing in the Olympic qualifying basketball tournament—the Fiba Asia Championship in 2011.
SBP vice chairman Ricky Vargas confirmed to Standard Today that the country’s governing body in basketball had already sent their interest to Fiba Asia. While Fiba Asia secretary general Dato Yeoh Choo Hock of Malaysia earlier confirmed that a decision should be made by the group before the year ends, the region’s basketball ruling body will instead come up with a decision early next year.
“We have already expressed our serious interest in hosting the event,” said Vargas. “But we will only hear the decision sometime first quarter of next year. I’m confident that the Philippines will have a strong chance of being given the privilege to host such prestigious tournament like the Fiba Asia, which is the qualifying event for the 2012 London Olympics.”
The champion in the Fiba Asia will be the lone representative of the Asian region in the Olympics, unless a revision will be done next year. Several countries are reportedly clamoring for the expansion of teams in the biennial meet wherein 16 teams should play and an addition of one more Asian team be accommodated in the world’s biggest sports spectacle.
Automatically seeded in the Olympics is host London, as well as the 2011 world champion.
The Philippines last hosted the Fiba Asia Championship (then known as the Asian Basketball Confederation) in 1973, wherein the country bannered by Bogs Adornado, Robert Jaworski, Ramon Fernandez, the late Tembong Melencio, Francis Arnaiz, Big Boy Reynoso and Manny Paner among others, defeated the Shin Dong Pa-led Korean squad at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
The country also had the privilege of hosting the inaugural staging of this event in 1960.
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