Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Expect tough competition in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in July, especially when the Gilas Pilipinas face the European juggernauts in the basketball conclave where an Olympic slot is at stake.
READ: Philippines preparing for FIBA OQT hosting duties
The Philippines’ foes in the Manila Olympic Qualifier will be determined on Wednesday (1:30 a.m. PHT) after the draw at the FIBA House of Basketball in Mies, Geneva, and at least two teams from Europe will be drawn in the same group according to Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) Executive Director Sonny Barrios.
“We are not informed at the moment of how the draw will be conducted but we understand it will be a modified draw based on geographical and quality principles,” said Barrios.
“Since Turin and Belgrade will host two of the three tournaments, that means there will be six European countries left to be drawn. We are expecting at least two European countries to be drawn in our group. FIBA will not want to overload a group with countries from the same zone. For instance, we don’t expect either Iran or Japan to be in our group.”
Nonetheless, Barrios said Filipino fans will get a golden chance to witness world-class competition in July.
“This won’t be an exhibition or a tune-up or a pocket tournament. This is an important competition where a ticket to the Olympics is at stake,” the SBP official said.
Barrios added, “The Olympic qualifier is a tougher challenge than the FIBA Asia Championships where we finished second in Changsha last year. But while our chances may be slim to win it, remember we’ve got our Sixth Man, the world’s Most Valuable Fans, and that advantage could tilt the balance.”
The 18 participating countries are broken down into eight from Europe (France, Serbia, Turkey, Greece, Croatia, Italy, Latvia, and Czech Republic), three from Asia (Philippines, Iran, and Japan), three from the Americas (Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Canada), three from Africa (Angola, Tunisia, and Senegal), and New Zealand from Oceania.
Barrios left Manila for Geneva via Abu Dhabi on Monday (January 25) after midnight and will be back Thursday night.
While in Mies, he will confer with FIBA director of events Predrag Bogosevljev on matters relating to Manila hosting the Olympic qualifier at the Mall of Asia Arena on July 4 to 10.
Italy and Serbia will host the two other Olympic Qualifiers.
