By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
On August 12, the 2023 FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournaments in Turkey, Syria, and Poland-Estonia will begin, while the ones in Argentina and Nigeria are set to begin on the 14th. It’s time, then, to explain everything you need to know about these tournaments.
First and foremost, the number of all participating teams: 40. These are comprised of the “28 countries that participated in the Second Round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 Qualifiers and did not qualify for the 32-team World Cup”, as stated in an official press release by FIBA. The remaining “12 countries are among the highest-ranked national teams that did not qualify for the Second Round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 Qualifiers”, the statement continues.
Each 2023 FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament consists of two groups of four teams each, with the top two teams which will advance to the Final Phase. “The first-place team will crossover to play the second-place team from the other Group in the Semi-Finals. The winners of each Semi-Final matchup will advance to play against the other in the Final to determine the winner of each OPQT”, the press release goes on.
Finally, “The five winners earning spots in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments to be held in 2024”. These are the participating teams in the five OPQTs:
2023 FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament in Poland-Estonia
- Group A: Czech Republic, Estonia, Israel, North Macedonia
- Group B: BIH, Hungary, Poland, Portugal
2023 FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament in Turkey
- Group C: Bulgaria, Iceland, Turkiye, Ukraine
- Group D: Belgium, Croatia, Netherlands, Sweden
2023 FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament in Argentina
- Group A: Argentina, Bahamas, Cuba, Panama
- Group B: Chile, Colombia, Uruguay, Virgin Islands
2023 FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament in Nigeria
- Group A: Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Uganda
- Group B: Congo DR, Cameroon, Guinea, Tunisia
2023 FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament in Syria
- Group A: Bahrain, Chinese Taipei, India, Korea
- Group B: Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Syria
PHOTO CREDIT: FIBA