FIBA U17 Women's Skills Challenge 2020 champions China congratulated at award ceremony
CHENGDU (China) - An award ceremony for the champions of the first edition of the FIBA U17 Women's Skills Challenge 2020 took place at halftime of a WCBA game in Chengdu, China.
The FIBA U17 Skills Challenges was organized during the summer due to the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cups 2020 unable to be played due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 73 teams from 39 countries participated remotely in this event from all regions. The China U17 women's team defeated Poland by one point in the Final.
Li Qingyang, the team's youngest player, won the MVP title for the Challenge.
The award ceremony was held during halftime of a WCBA game, with the aim to encourage more women to participate in basketball. Mr. Fang Liang, General Manager of FIBA China, and Mr. Lu Yongming, representative of CBA, attended and presented the championship plaque and prize to the China U17 women's basketball team assistant coach Li Dongmei and to players Li Qingyang and Zhou Xiyu.
A congratulatory video from Dirk Nowitzki, Chairman of FIBA Players Commission, was played at the beginning of the ceremony. Dirk congratulated the girls for their impressive results in this unique tournament and wished them good luck in the future.
Li Dongmei, assistant coach of China U17 women's team said: "This event is a new challenge for the coaching staff and the players, but the whole team played extremely well. Through the efforts of everyone, we have achieved success. This is the first victory for the China U17 girls at the world level and although it is not a regular basketball tournament, we are very proud of this achievement. It will be a great memory for the whole team."
MVP Li Qingyang, who just turned 15 years old, said: "In this special time, with the help of coaches and teammates, I was able to represent my country to win the competition - this means a lot to me. My confidence has undoubtedly increased a lot. It has motivated me to continue to work hard, and I hope I can enter the senior national team and continue to win glory for my country."
FIBA
