ABIDJAN (Côte d’Ivoire) - The Young Lions Cup West was held for the first time in the Western African country of Côte d’Ivoire this past weekend with 56 youths from eight countries taking part in the 3x3 basketball event.

The U18 girls and boys - all winners of their national qualifiers - made the trip to Abidjan where the Finals took place in conjunction with a Youth Leadership Workshop, the culmination event of an IBF (International Basketball Foundation) 'Basketball For Good' project organized in collaboration with FIBA Africa's Regional Office and the Côte d’Ivoire National Basketball Federation.

The workshop took place on the mornings of Friday, Saturday and Sunday with the participants being made aware of their leadership potential and the positive impact they can have on their communities.

Workshop orchestrator Mthoko Madonda shared his excitement about the event.

"We got to connect with youths from eight West African countries who love the game of basketball. Our goal was to share leadership, resilience and basketball for good skills with participants," he said. "We're always inspired by the youth we interact with and are excited to see how this impacts them and their communities going forward."

The workshop also served as an opportunity for the youths to interact with each other and build friendships. Amagnitou Abla from Togo said: "We learnt about resilience and courage. Yesterday everyone was stressed and pressured about the game. Today we feel happy and united".

The participants spent Saturday and Sunday afternoons on the court, with exciting games and great showcases of skills taking place on both days. Côte d’Ivoire proved too strong in both the boys' and girls' categories, as they went unbeaten to win both tournaments. Both finals were disputed against Niger.

The youths were also able to showcase their skills in shooting and dunk contests. Prisca Kpoka brought a trophy home for Togo by winning the shooting contest, while Côte d’Ivoire's Traore Aboubacar took the honors in the dunk contest.

A large crowd and great atmosphere were present throughout the event, with dancing and Mini Basketball games taking place on the court in between games.

The event was also made special thanks to the presence of members of FIBA's Central Board and Executive Committee, including FIBA President Horacio Muratore being on hand for the final games. The members of both instances witnessed impressive games and interacted with the youths.

FIBA President Horacio Muratore

FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis was able to hand out the important Basketball for Good award which was earned by Feliciano Nguema. The young Equatorial Guinean did not let the language barrier stop him from taking an active part in the workshop and showed great resilience in wanting to learn. He is highly motivated and already thinking of ways to make a difference in his home country.

FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis

FIBA Vice-President and FIBA Africa President Hamane Niang praised the event.

"It was very well organized with great animations. The level in the final games exceeded all expectations. I am convinced that this IBF initiative is wonderful and we must ensure that it lasts," he said.

FIBA Vice-President and FIBA Africa President Hamane Niang and FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis

Looking back on the entirety of the event, James Ocloo, 3x3 coordinator from Ghana stated: "My players gained experience. It’s their first time travelling out. The leadership skills, taught them how to help in their communities. They learnt how to stand in front of people and present. I hope that they can take lessons learnt and go back to use basketball to change other kids, so that wherever they go they can be change agents in the communities".

FIBA