Bolivian basketball is in rapid growth

BOLIVIA - The silver medal from the eleventh edition of the Juegos Suramericanos Cochabamba 2018 bolster the growth of Bolivian basketball. Marco Arze, President of the Bolivian Basketball Federation (FBB, for its Spanish acronym) and the Bolivian Olympic Committee (COB), as well as Vice-President Gustavo Carmona, talked to FIBA about the current state of their country, what they have achieved and what they intend to do in 2019.

The women's team won the silver medal - the fourth for Bolivia in Juegos Sudamericanos - in a game disputed against Chile (80-40) in the month of May at Polideportivo Evo Morales in Quillacollo, where a great number of fans attended to cheer on the Bolivian team.

“The Cochabamba Suramericano was one of the most relevant moments of 2018; there was a lot of public particularly in the women’s category, where we reached the silver medal. The crowd’s presence was very good and that’s very positive for our country. More than 12,000 people came and some 3,000 had to leave because there was no more seating available in the stadium," Arze explained.

Mirian Raquel Justiniano Claros was one of the greatest scorers of that final with a contribution of 18 points. She remembers that "it was beautiful to achieve that at home. Most players already knew each other, this is a work that has been building up for years. We did what we could: Everyone played their part, and this is a great result.

"The task we set out to do in 2018 isn't over - we'll conclude in February. The different associations are developing their activities internally. The National League took place without any mishaps. Calero de Potosí were crowned champions after getting significant results and are now well positioned in Liga Sudamericana after winning a few games, which is not usual for basketball in Bolivia. This demonstrates the effectiveness of the development of men’s basketball in Libobasquet," he added.

Meanwhile, FBB Vice-President Gustavo Carmona, shared what’s to come in this new year that's about to begin: "We're putting together all efforts to be able to get into 3x3, with three competitions scheduled in the cities of Tarija, Cochabamba and La Paz."

It's been many years since the Federation has been seeking the government's support for the sport, which is why the President once again insisted on the importance of a possible contribution in order to achieve, among other things, future results at the international level: “Due to the approval of the new […] National Sports Law (#804), we've unfortunately been going through a drought for quite a number of years. You can tell because of the low participation rate of Bolivian teams in the international stage. We have no support for our discipline or the federations that are part of the system. We hope to be registered in 2019 and obtain more resources that facilitate the enable the participation of our national teams.”

However, this year will bring the Federation new objectives for the senior men’s team, as was announced by the President: "We want to participate in the second round of the AmeriCup. We're expecting the announcement, the date and the players to set forth in this task and get there in good terms."

At the same time, the local league continues to grow in both its branches: "Women's Libobasquet has gone through its second year with foreign players, which is a great step forward. We started with four clubs and now we have six. As for the men, we've placed our bets on the spectacular development in the games, with presence of two foreign players in the court."

Carmona goes further and announces that "for the first week in February, the Superior Council of the Bolivian Basketball League is being convened to start Libobasquet in the second half of March, with 12 clubs". He also assures that "the creation of the Minor Basketball League (LIMENOR) is a fact and will jumpstart from the U13 to the U17 categories", which is one of the Federation’s greatest challenges in basketball development for this year 2019.

FIBA