Ryerson’s Rana to lead Canadian men at inaugural FIBA U17 world championship

Hamburg, GER – Canada Basketball’s Cadet Men’s National Team, will play against Australia, Korea, Poland, Spain, and host country Germany at the FIBA U17 World Championship. This is FIBA’s first foray into hosting a world competition for this age group and is an opportunity for Canada to profile some of the elite young stars of the game.

“Canada Basketball congratulates FIBA for developing an international tournament for this age group to start to introduce the international game for the younger players, encouraging the development of necessary skills, experience and vision to excel in the basketball careers,” said Wayne Parrish, CEO and Executive Director for Canada Basketball. “We have worked closely with our athletes, families and provincial partners to develop a Cadet Men’s team of talented young players who are eager to represent Canada on the world stage this summer.”

FIBA, in cooperation with the German Basketball Federation, hosted the draw live earlier today at the University of Hamburg to determine the placement of the 12 teams from five continents. The teams were assigned to two pools of six for the first round of competition.

"Our Cadet men are extremely excited to be representing Canada on the highest stage in youth basketball but we are aware of the challenges that lie ahead in facing some the top basketball nations in the world," stated Roy Rana, Head Coach for the Cadet Men's National Team and Head Coach of the Ryerson University Rams.

Canada is in a competitive pool led by Spain, who won the FIBA Europe U16 Championship in 2009 and 2006. Poland finished in fourth place at that event. Australia, another strong competitor in Canada’s pool, claimed the gold at the 2009 FIBA Oceania U16 Championship.

Rounding out the 2010 FIBA U17 World Championship tournament in Group ‘A’ is Argentina, China, Egypt, Lithuania, Serbia, and USA.

Rana is aware that this is a great building process for his squad. “Our Canadian Cadet team will be reflective of the strong development of Basketball here in Canada. Many of our players have experienced a great level of success at home and on the international stage . The ability to integrate these athletes into other areas of Canada’s national team programming has been a critical piece in preparing them for success this summer. This summer’s squad will have the depth and experience to compete with the best in the World.”
Canada’s Schedule:

The first round begins on July 2, 2010, with each team playing the five others nations in their respective group

Friday, July 2, 2010 Canada vs. Germany
Saturday July 3, 2010 Canada vs. Australia
Monday, July 5, 2010 Canada vs. Spain
Tuesday, July 6, 2010 Canada vs. Korea
Wednesday, July 7, 2010 Canada vs. Poland

The top four teams from each group advance to the quarter-finals, at which point the competition continues through to the final – held on July 11, 2010 – in a standard knock-out format.

Canada is one of three FIBA Americas nations to qualify for the tournament, joining Argentina and USA. The other nine remaining countries include Australia, China, Egypt, Germany, Korea, Lithuania, Poland, Serbia, and Spain.
Last summer Canada’s Cadet Men’s Team participated in the first ever 2009 FIBA Americas U16 Championship, winning three of their five games at the tournament. The talented squad dominated over Mexico, Bahamas and Venezuela to earn the bronze medal and a berth to the 2010 U17 FIBA World Championship. The team’s only losses were to Argentina (silver medal) and USA (gold medal). Both countries drew group ‘A’ for the FIBA U17 World Championship.

Canada’s 2010 National Teams:

Overall, Canada’s National Teams have had great success internationally in 2009, with both the Cadet Men’s and Women’s Team qualifying for the FIBA U17 World Championships. At the highest level, Canada’s Senior Men’s and Women’s Teams both qualified for the 2010 World Championships taking place in Turkey and the Czech Republic respectively. Joining dominant countries like Argentina, Australia, China, Spain and USA, Canada is one of only six FIBA nations to achieve this distinction.

Parrish is pleased with the direction of both the men’s and women’s national team programs stating, “This summer, the world will have a chance to see the incredible basketball talent that Canada is developing at both the age group and senior levels. Our athletes and coaches have a passion and drive to succeed and we look forward to the exciting competitions ahead in Germany, France, Turkey and the Czech Republic.”

The 2010 FIBA U17 World Championships for Men runs from July 2-11 in Hamburg, Germany. For a complete listing of the tournament pools and 12 participating teams visit the official tournament website at hamburg2010.fiba.com.
Source:

Canada Basketball