QINGYUAN CITY (China) - Thirty basketball coaches from the Guangdong Province of China commenced this week the first session of the FIBA Level 1 Coaches Course organized through the FIBA BG Basketball Academy, a three-week course being led by some of the top World Association of Basketball Coaches.

FIBA and its Global Partner, Beijing Enterprises Group Company Limited (BG), created their first-ever Basketball Academy in Beijing, China, in July 2018. The FIBA BG Basketball Academy was an important legacy set up in conjunction with the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 with the aim to provide optimal training to a new generation of China's youth players, coaches and referees. The facility also offers first-class training for off-court areas such as manager programs for sports marketing and event operations.

This week the thirty Chinese grassroots basketball coaches attending the course will be taught basketball training skills from world-class expert coaches from FIBA and the World Association of Basketball Coaches and have the opportunity to gain the FIBA Level 1 Coach Certification at the completion of the full course.

FIBA Secretary General Mr. Andreas Zagklis said: "This FIBA Level 1 Coaching Course introduces international coaching resource and high-quality course content to China. This course is significant for promoting the exchange and cooperation of basketball between China and other countries globally and is helping to improve the coaching capability of Chinese grassroots basketball coaches across the country." Mr. Zagklis sent a congratulatory message via video to the participants. 

Mr. Wang Xuan, Director General of Basketball Administration Center of General Administration of Sports of China, who attended the opening ceremony of the course, said: "I would like to personally congratulate each participant for being part of this inaugural coaching course. Learning advanced concepts and training methods takes time and this is just the beginning. Since we love basketball and are all determined to be good basketball coaches, we must understand where we fall behind and where we can progress. We need to continue to work hard and ensure the success of our coaches' programs and continue to develop the sport we love." 

Throughout the course, participants will gain firsthand knowledge and insight from FIBA Coach and Instructor, Mr. Nenad Hrvoic, pictured below, via on-court activities, discussion groups, seminars, theory classes and group activities. Mr. Milan Opacic, a World Association of Basketball Coaches Executive Committee member and FIBA BG Academy Technical Director also sent a message to the participants via video.  

The first session of the FIBA Level 1 Coaches Course will conclude at the end of the week, with the second session of the course commencing on June 21 in Qingyuan City, and the third to be held in Xi'an in early July.

FIBA