SAMAHANG Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) president Al Panlilio was elected Second Vice President of the FIBA Asia Board during the recent Zone Assembly of FIBA in Asia in Kuala Lumpur.
His term ends 2027 as well as that of India federation chief Dr. K. Govindraj who was elected president, succeeding Sheikh Saud Ali Al Thani of Qatar, who served Asian basketball for more than 30 years.
“It is an honor to be elected in the board of members of FIBA Asia to help the federation continue promoting the game of basketball and camaraderie in the region and the world,” Panlilio said.
“Being part of the FIBA Asia board member comes with a huge responsibility to push for development of new projects, not only in the country but in Asia, that would elevate the level of basketball competitions in the region,” he added.
Former National Basketball Association Yao Ming of China was elected chairman, while Lebanon’s Akram Halabi was named First Vice President.
“I believe SBP also needs to strengthen its basketball development programs especially for the youth in anticipation and preparation for forthcoming competitions in the region in the next two to three years,” Panlilio added.
FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis highlighted during the meeting the crucial role the Philippines will be playing in hosting the FIBA 2023 World Cup in August.
“We play this year our biggest event, the FIBA Basketball World Cup in three Asian countries—Philippines, Japan and Indonesia,” Zagklis said. “This will be the first time in three countries combining together almost 500 million people. It will be an unprecedented event in terms of quality for the players and the fans.”
Panlilio said preparation for the prestigious global basketball event is in full swing and SBP is calling for all basketball stakeholders in the country to be united to ensure the successful hosting of the event.
Also elected to the FIBA Asia board were FIBA Executive Director-Asia Hagop Khajirian and Sub-Zone representatives Yuko Mitsuya (East Asia), Kho Poo Thai (Southeast Asia), Tarif Koutrach (West Asia), Abay Alpamyssov (Central Asia), Abhijit Sarker (South Asia) and Dr. Ghassan Tashkandi (Gulf).
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