RIO DE JANEIRO (Brazil) - The Brazilian Basketball Confederation (CBB) bets on its National 3x3 Teams and prepares its men’s and women’s teams for the Pan American Games in Lima.

The 3x3 has significantly increased its development in Brazil; that is why the CBB bets on its National Teams to get the best results possible in every tournament.

Now, the new challenge for the country’s 3x3 National Teams is the Pan American Games in Lima, which will take place from July 26 to August 11. Coaches Rafaella Bauerfeldt Lopes and Douglas Lorite announced this Friday (July 5) the list of athletes that will make up the National Teams.

The Pan American Games is the largest international multidisciplinary sports event in which athletes from the Americas participate. The competition is held every four years, and the CBB marked the continental event as a major objective.

Rafaella selected Aldecinete Mineiro Gomes de Souza (Blackout 3x3) - SP, Evelyn Larissa Mariano Silva (Sport Club Corinthians Paulista) - SP, Luana Ariescha Fernandes da Silva (Sport Club Corinthians Paulista) - SP and Carla Patrícia Silva Lucchini (Vera Cruz Campinas) - SP.

"I am very happy to be able to represent our country in this discipline. We are leading a young and promising team, both physically and technically. We understand that we must root our ideas in these promising players and spread this discipline We are paying more attention to the physical criteria because we understand that today the game is more dynamic all over the world and we will make the necessary tactical adjustments to look for the best result possible at the Pan American Games. We have the support we need, and we will do our best against all opponents", explained the Brazilian coach.

"I do not have words to describe my happiness: being in the Brazilian team is the dream of any athlete and being able to achieve it, playing what I love the most, it's priceless. I'm focused on having a great tournament, training every day to be better", commented Luana Ariescha Fernandes da Silva.

For the men's 3x3 tournament, Douglas selected Felipe Oscar de Camargo (Campinas 3x3) - SP, Jonatas Júlio de Mello (Campinas 3x3) - SP, Jefferson Froehlich Socas (São Paulo DC) - SP and William Weihermann (São Paulo DC) - SP, the same players who went to the 3x3 World Cup in the Netherlands, and finished fifth in Pool D with four losses.

"For this selection, as it was already in our plans, we have the same team that played the 3x3 World Cup, we have a new opportunity to compete against the best teams of the continent. The United States and Canada are a bit ahead, but against the others, we will know our level," said Douglas.

"We already have experience and it is time to look for a better result. We want to do well in the tournament, we want to get to the Final, that is the main idea we have since we started training," added the Brazilian 3x3 men's coach.

The 3x3 basketball competitions at the Pan American Games in Lima will take place at the Eduardo Dibós Coliseum. The countries participating in the women’s event are the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Brazil, Uruguay, the United States, and Argentina, while in the men’s event will be the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.

On Saturday, July 27, the Brazilian 3x3 women’s team will debut against the Dominican Republic and will then face Venezuela and the United States. On Sunday, July 28, they will play against Argentina and Uruguay.

The same Saturday, the Brazilian men’s team will debut against the Dominican Republic and the United States. On Sunday they will play Venezuela, Puerto Rico, and Argentina.

According to the regulations, in the first phase the teams will play against each other and the first four teams will advance to the Semi-Finals. The winners of the Semi-Final will play for the title, while the losers will play for the third and fourth positions.

The CBB bets on its National 3x3 Teams at the same time that the discipline continues to grow in all the States of the country. So much so that the Federation of Basketball of the Federal District, will celebrate from July 6 to July 14 " La Estación de Baloncesto de Compras de JK", with a 3x3 court in a shopping center, where for nine days there will be attractions for basketball fans.

It is the third consecutive year of the project, which is the largest basketball promotion event in the Federal District, with a totally free program for 9 days, where you can attend courses, as well as see an official 3x3 basketball competition.

The program has a "Basketball wheelchair" team tournament and on the second weekend, the second stage of the 3x3 Brazilian Basketball Championship will be held, which will guarantee the first six places in the final stage that will take place the days 9, 10 and 11 of August of 2019. The 3x3 Championship gathers the best teams of the country and guarantees a ticket to the FIBA 3x3 professional circuit (the FIBA 3x3 World Tour Montreal Masters).

"The basketball season is already the largest basketball promotion event in the Federal District, and in this third edition at JK Shopping, it will be even better. We organized 68 hours of activities, distributed over nine days, all free access. It happens in a 3x3 court in the middle of a shopping center, "said Francisco Oliveira, president of the DF Basketball Federation.

FIBA