IRI - Iran: the rising power of Asia (Part I)

TEHRAN (National team) - Iran enjoyed their finest moment in basketball at the FIBA Asia Championship this year in Japan.

Playing in a region which has been dominated by China for decades, the Iranians are a hoops-playing nation on the up.

Here is Part 1 of Riath Al-Samarrai's in-depth look at how Iran have risen to become Asia's kings in waiting.

When Hamed Ehadadi caught the ball just a few seconds before half-time in Iran's FIBA Asia Championship final against Lebanon, what happened next surprised everyone except two men sat on the Iranian bench (watch Iran's celebration).

The giant 2.18m centre, in the midst of what was later described by the Lebanon coach as the "greatest game of his career", glanced up from where he was standing at midcourt and made history.

His high-arcing shot, dispatched right on the buzzer, sailed through the air and fell into the basket to put six points of daylight between Iran and the 1999 champions.

The gap would never be closed.

Iran, who only had a 14th place finish at the 1948 Olympics to boast barely a year earlier, had become the champions of Asia for the first time.

In their wake, among others, were 14-time champions China, but in their sights was a bigger goal: the Olympic Games for which they had just qualified.

Success on that stage would add to the already gargantuan level of shock created around the basketball world by the sudden rise to prominence of Iran, but coach Rajko Toroman and Basketball Federation Islamic Republic of Iran president Mahmoud Mashhoon would not be surprised.

Likewise, when they first announced their threat with a bronze medal in the Asian Games last year, the pair simply acknowledged another milestone on Mashhoon's five-year plan to establish Iran as a power in the world game.

Mashhoon explains: "We should have a very strong presence in the 2008 Olympic Games and try not to be an easy rival for the top basketball teams in the world. A respectful basketball performance in the Olympics will help Iranian basketball to develop more in the future.

"Qualification for the 2010 FIBA World championship in Turkey is our other target.

"We are also the host for 2008 FIBA Asia U18 championship in Tehran and plan to win the title and qualify for FIBA U19 World championship."

It's an ambitious mission statement - one which would have been unimaginable a few years ago - but the wheels are already in motion to ensure Iran, who have risen from 47th to 32nd in the world, continue meeting their goals.

The importing of foreign skills, like the hiring of renowned Serbian coach Toroman, has been a key element to their development, along with the influx of players from America: In 2005 there were an estimated 20 Americans plying their trade for teams teams sponsored by the Iranian Ministry of Defence.

A shift in priorities has also been critical. Mashoon says: "Special consideration from our president, Dr Mahmood Ahmadinejad, for sports activities and especially basketball and promoting the mentality of 'we can' among our younger generations has helped."

As has an increased budget from the Physical Education Organisation and National Olympic Committee, part of which has strengthened the Iran Basketball Federation League.

As Mashoon says: "It's impossible to be successful without strong and well-established national leagues."

Arguably the most significant strand of their plan has been the creation of what they call their "talent identification program", which operates in 20 established centers around the country where certified coaches track players for selection to their junior, young men and senior national teams.

"I believe without any of these, our success would not be possible," Mashoon adds.

In all it has led to two medals on the elite stage.

...part II to follow next week

FIBA