KUALA LUMPUR (Mageshwaran's AsiaScope) - Do all changes begin small? Not necessarily in the case of Sri Lankan basketball. The country with a very modest history of basketball - in all departments of the sport - has indeed launched itself onto the international map at the 3rd FIBA Asia U16 Championship for Women in style and with panache, the disappointing lack of a not too strong home team notwithstanding.

That last part of my statement above was indeed the only point that was being debated even as the top brass of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) were settling down having put up what in my experience has been the most spell binding Opening Ceremony in a FIBA Asia event.

"How can we begin to show better results on court that match our organisational abilities?" Sarath Ekanayake, the affable President of the Sri Lankan National Basketball Federation, also the Chief Minister of Central Province, would have surely wondered after his team ensured all the 'i's were dotted and the 't's crossed.

The answer to his question lay within his team itself.

"With the hosting this event, we have made history in Sri Lankan basketball. Now we have to make sure this platform is not wasted. We will use this foundation to widen the base and spread the support for the game," said Ranil Francisco, Senior Vice President of the SLBF who is at the helm of the LOC.

"Honestly, many people may have not even known about basketball in Sri Lanka till this event. We realised this during our preparations. It was shocking for us to find that there aren't many people who are aware of what's happening in the sport we all love. We will look at the Closing Ceremony of this event as the starting point to put Sri Lanka basketball on the fast track," added Yaswanth Muttettuwegama, another Vice President of the SLBF and the ubiquituous lynchpin of the LOC machinery.

"We will start getting more schools involved to widen the base," said Francisco and Muttettwegama.

Those words surely would sound music the ears of Rev. Bro. Joseph Jeyakanthan the Secretary of the Schools Basketball Association of Sri Lanka.

"I couldn't express my excitement at hearing Sri Lanka will host an event of this importance and stature. The very decision to host an event here was a great boost to our programs," said the Principal of St Joseph's College Colombo.

"There needs to be a structural change in the way sport is being organised in Sri Lanka. That is not under our control. But when people witness events such as this it sets them thinking on what needs to be done. That's a huge plus," he went on.

Under Jeyakanthan, his organisation has taken up the task of spreading the base already.

"We have had clinics in the Northern parts already. When we had our programme in Kilinochi, we had many coaches coming from Mannar, Jaffna and Mullaittivu. We had another program in Kandy for the coaches from that region. And we are certainly encouraged by the interest they have shown," he said.

"I certainly do believe this event has given an identity to basketball in Sri Lanka. Now we'll sit down with the federation and work out our plans."

In Sri Lanka's case it surely seems like all's well that begins well!

So long…

S Mageshwaran

FIBA Asia

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