By REYNALD MAGALLON
FIBA has partnered with Chooks-to-Go in staging two 3×3 World Tour Masters events in Manila and Cebu this year.
The world governing body revealed that the country will be hosting the FIBA 3×3 Manila Masters on May 28 and 29 and the FIBA 3×3 Cebu Masters on October 1 and 2—both under the care of avid basketball supporter Chooks-to-Go.
The country is joining France, Prague, Lausanne, Debrecen, Montreal, Chengdu, Jeddah, Hong Kong, and Macau in the 2022 FIBA 3×3 calendar which is set to fire off on May 14 and15 in Utsunomiya, Japan.
Chooks-to-Go President Ronald Mascariñas stressed the importance of hosting the event as the country gears up for another bid of clinching an Olympic berth for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“Since 2019, the goals of Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3×3 is to expose the Filipino basketball player to world-class competition while bringing quality 3×3 basketball to the fans,” said Mascariñas.
“Two years before the 2024 Paris Olympics, we need to garner FIBA 3×3 points to qualify for the tournament or the Olympic Qualifying Tournament. By hosting the top-level tournaments, we get maximum points while also giving our players more experience and mileage in international 3×3,” he continued.
Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3×3 players will be taking part in the FIBA 3×3 circuit which will conclude on December 9 and 10 in Abu Dhabi.
“I think we should be very grateful to Chooks-to-Go for insisting and continuing its effort to help 3×3 in the Philippines,” said FIBA 3×3 managing director Alex Sanchez. “We always thought and believed that the Philippines is a great opportunity and market for 3×3.
“Therefore, we can only be grateful for this continuous effort in these difficult times.”
