WITH an end to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic anything but certain at this point, world basketball governing body FIBA moved to update the 3×3 World Tour season calendar.

On the heels of its decision to suspend all FIBA competitions beginning March 12, FIBA on Wednesday confirmed that the first five Masters of the FIBA 3×3 World Tour of 2010 are moved to the second semester of the year, including that scheduled to take place in the Philippines.

Apart from the Manila Masters, affected were those in Doha, Chengdu, Mexico City and Utsunomiya.

The Doha, Mexico City and Utsunomiya Masters will not take place as originally scheduled. A new date will be announced at a later stage.

The Manila and Chengdu Masters, meanwhile, are now planned for Aug. 15–16 and Oct. 17–18, respectively.

The Manila Masters was supposed to happen on May 2-3 at the SM Megamall Fashion Hall and would have marked the first time that the tour would be passing Philippine soil since 2015.

Preparations were being done for the competition by local organizers until COVID-19 rendered it impossible to be staged on its original schedule, prompting FIBA to adjust its calendar.

As for the FIBA 3×3 Olympic Qualifying Tournaments, FIBA said discussions are still being done with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which last week decided to postpone the Olympic Games to July 2021 over concerns on COVID-19.

The world basketball governing body said it will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation on a daily basis and evaluate the options for the lifting of the suspension of competitions when the situation allows for it. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

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