MUNICH (Germany) - The annual FIBA Europe General Assembly was for the first time held virtually, with the member federations convening for the 2020 edition by videoconference on Friday.

The General Assembly was chaired by FIBA Europe President Turgay Demirel, with FIBA President Hamane Niang, FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis, FIBA Executive Director Europe Kamil Novak and members of the FIBA Europe Board in attendance.

Mr. Demirel began the proceedings by addressing the unique circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic, which prevented the General Assembly taking place physically this year.

In his opening statement Mr. Demirel offered a brief account of what was a very successful 2019 on court with Latvia and Serbia organizing FIBA Women's EuroBasket and the Youth Championships being hosted by no less than 15 National Federations.

Mr. Demirel also mentioned the great success of the European teams at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019, organised successfully in China.

He stated that FIBA Europe reacted swiftly when the COVID-19 pandemic became a crisis, reacting on cancellation of events and rescheduling others, while preparing a detailed roadmap for return to action later on, and always in consultation with all stakeholders and taking into account the health of participants.

Mr. Demirel paid tribute to Borislav Stankovic, David Stern and Kobe Bryant who sadly passed away this year.

In their statements, Mr. Niang and Mr. Zagklis commended the work done by the European Board, the National Federations and the office, during these difficult times.

The General Assembly delegates from 49 National Federations were presented with an annual report by Mr. Novak, covering all events and activities since the previous General Assembly in May 2019.

The assembly was presented with reports by the presidents of FIBA Europe Commissions, as well as IWBF Europe Secretary General Petr Tucek and FIBA Europe Properties Managing Director Monika Puchner.

The delegates officially approved May 15, 2021 as the date for next year's General Assembly set to take place in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The proposal by the Lithuanian Basketball Federation to host the 2022 General Assembly in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius was also approved.

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About FIBA
FIBA (fiba.basketball) - the world governing body for basketball - is an independent association formed by 213 National Basketball Federations throughout the world. It is recognized as the sole competent authority in basketball by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

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