POLAND and the United States of America were among the 3×3 teams which booked a spot in the Tokyo Olympics following the conclusion of the qualifying tournament in Graz, Austria, on Sunday.
The Polish team topped the men’s division of the five-day tournament from May 26 to 30 while the American women’s squad ruled its division.
The Philippines, which went winless in four matches, ended up last in the 20-team men’s field.
Poland was the first to get its Olympic ticket in the men’s division after giving Latvia its first loss in Graz in the semifinals (20-18). The Netherlands joined it later after winning over France in the Final Four.
Latvia clinched the last Olympic spot available at the qualifying tournament after beating France in the last game of the tournament (21-15).
The three teams join the Russian Olympic Committee, China and Japan as teams who have already secured spots in the rescheduled Olympics in Tokyo, happening from July 23 to Aug. 8, 2021, where 3×3 basketball is set to make its debut.
On the women’s side, the US was the second team to qualify after France. Japan got the last ticket to Tokyo available at the event in a thrilling overtime versus Spain.
Apart from France, US and Japan, also in the Olympics are the Russian Olympic Committee, Romania and Mongolia.
The last spot in both men’s and women’s categories will be decided at the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) 3×3 Universality Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Debrecen, Hungary, on June 4-6.
LAST PLACE
Meanwhile, the Philippines found the going tough in the FIBA 3×3 Olympic Qualifying Tournament, with no wins to show for in the four games it played in Pool C.
The team, composed of Philippine Basketball Association stars CJ Perez and Mo Tautuaa, and rookies and top 3×3 players Joshua Munzon and Leonard Santillan, was not able to get its collective game going right at the onset, falling to Qatar (12-21) and Slovenia, (11-21) in that order, in its first two games on opening day on May 26.
The nationals tried to compete better two days later despite playing undermanned with Mr. Tautuaa out injured (neck), but still could not go over the hump, bowing to the Dominican Republic, (11-22) and France (14-15) in their final assignments.
In the aftermath, local basketball officials, while showing appreciation for the efforts the players gave in Graz, admit it is back to the drawing board for the country’s 3×3 basketball program and that they hope to do better in future tournaments. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo
