The International Olympic Committee is trying to bring more youth to its basketball teams.
The IOC announced Friday that the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo will feature 3-on-3 basketball, something FIBA has been trying to get onto the program since 2007. The event is part of the committee’s focus toward more “youth-focused and urban-based additions,” which include the 3-on-3 tournament, sport climbing, skateboarding and surfing, among others.
The addition actually isn’t all that new, though, as the Youth Olympic Games featured 3-on-3 basketball in the 2010 YOG in Singapore and the 2014 YOG in Nanjing, China, where it was a huge success.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WizX_7LN1-I
“The intensity and skill level of the 3×3 game is such that there are no traditional 3×3 powerhouses and new countries have emerged since the first YOG experience in 2010,” FIBA President Horacio Muratore said Friday in a statement. “This was our main objective back in 2007. The decision provides FIBA with a renewed, strong incentive to continue in this direction and grow the game of basketball by developing new young skilled basketball talents in both genders across the globe from small islands to large countries in every continent.”
The 3-on-3 tournament will feature eight teams each for men and women with 64 additional competitors in the sport. The format, qualification system and location of the venue will be announced later.
Thumbnail photo via RVR Photos/USA TODAY Sports Images
