Page 37 - Nile Explorer Issue 006

O n August 17-29, 2021, December 2019. Pesident Qualification is via the different

Rwanda hosts the conti-
Kakame is the sponsor of ‘The FIBA Africa subzones from Zone
nent’s biggest basketball show- Kagame(CECAFA) Cup’ which 1 to Zone 7. Six subzones receive
piece at Africa’s newest sports remains, upto today, the foremost two berths each, with Zone 1,
location in Kigali. Rwanda’s Pres- football tournament in East and getting one slot only. The host
ident Paul Kagame, on, August 9, Central Africa. Tanzania be will and the champion from the
2019, inaugurated the newly-built hosting this year’s tournament, in preceding AfroBasket also get a
Kigali Arena, one of the best Dar Salaam. berth each and finally three teams
sports facilities in Africa. The are selected as wild cards. Each
iconic, 10,000-seater The AfroBasket (also known as subzone conducts a qualification
state-of-the-art arena located the FIBA Africa Championship, tournament up to a year before
next to Amahoro National Stadi- FIBA African Championship, or the championship to determine
um, the country’s premier sports FIBA AfroBasket) is the premier the qualifying teams.
complex—a multipurpose facili- men's basketball continental
ty—is designed to host indoor championship of Africa, played The African Championship of
games, high profile meetings, biennially under the auspices of Nations known as "FIBA
conferences, exhibitions, and FIBA (International Basketball AfroBasket" since 2017 is the flag-
concerts—is a statement on the Federation), basketball's interna- ship competition of the Interna-
country’s policy and trajectory on tional governing body and the tional Basketball Federation’s
the development of sports, not FIBA African zone. The tourna- African Regional Office. The first
just in Rwanda, but on the conti- ment also serves to qualify teams edition of the championship was
nent. The draw ceremony for the for participation in the quadren- held in 1962 in Cairo, Egypt and
FIBA AfroBasket 2021 Qualifiers nial FIBA World Cup and the saw the host country claim the
took place at the Kigali Arena in Summer Olympic Games. first continental title. While that
The Nile Explorer 006 | 33
The Nile Explorer 006 | 37