SBP files letter of intent for Rio qualifier bid

MANILA, Philippines - The Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas has officially taken the first step to be a host candidate for one of the three 2016 Olympic world qualifying tournaments by submitting Friday a letter of intent to the FIBA general headquarters in Geneva.

The Philippines, losing finalist in the bidding war for the 2019 World Cup versus eventual winner China, will be contending this time with Mexico, Canada, Italy, Turkey, Russia, Germany and Serbia.

“The deadline was Monday. But we’re not too sure with the weather, so we submitted our ‘expression of interest’ as early as Friday night,” SBP deputy executive director Butch Antonio told The STAR.

“In return, the FIBA sent us two sets of documents that we have to fill up and satisfy to formalize our bid on or before Nov. 11,” Antonio also said, referring to the “host nation agreement” and “candidate file guidelines.”

The first document states the operating budget, contract agreement and principal terms among others while the other specifies details like the venue, working rooms, transportation, hotel accommodation, logistics, etc.

The bid also involves a hosting fee of almost Euro$2 million.

The International Basketball Association (FIBA) awards the hosting rights to three winning bidders during the FIBA board meeting in Geneva on Nov. 23.

Turkey, Russia and Germany are bidding to be a host to have one final shot at making the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. They didn’t earn a spot in the wildcard play in the FIBA EuroBasket eliminator.

Earning berths to the wildcard competition are France, Serbia, Greece, Italy and Czech Republic from Europe, Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico from America, Angola, Tunisia and Senegal from Africa, New Zealand from Oceania and the Philippines, Iran and Japan from Asia.

The three qualifiers will be held simultaneously July 5-11. The top teams from the three tournaments earn a place in the Rio Olympics.