Competition formats confirmed for Tokyo 2020 Olympic Basketball and 3x3 Basketball Tournaments

MIES (Switzerland) - The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (TOCOG) on Tuesday unveiled the detailed competition schedule of the Tokyo 2020 Games where Basketball and 3x3 Basketball are expected to be among the most popular and in-demand disciplines.

At Tokyo 2020, FIBA's contribution to the excitement of the Olympic Games will be unprecedented for a couple of reasons:

3x3 is set to make its debut. Adding a new urban basketball discipline to the Olympic program marks a quantum leap for the development of the game and presents an array of opportunities for new countries and players alike; an important change has been made in the Men's and Women's Olympic Basketball Tournaments, with the 12 participating teams in both competitions being divided into 3 groups of 4 each, instead of 2 groups of 6, bringing additional interest to every game of the tournament already from the group phase. [/unordered]

Here are the competition formats for the Olympic Basketball Program.

 

Men's and Women's Olympic Basketball Tournaments

Group Phase

In both tournaments, the 12 teams are divided into 3 groups (A, B and C) of 4 teams each. This stage of the competition is played in a round robin format, with each team playing all other teams in its group (a total of 3 games for each team).

The teams placed first and second in each group and the 2 best third-placed teams in the Group Phase qualify for the Final Phase. The remaining 4 teams take no further part in the competition.

Final Phase

A draw will take place following the conclusion of the Group Phase to determine the pairings of the Quarter-Finals. The winners of the groups (3 teams) and the second-placed team with the best result (1 team) from the Group Phase are placed in one pot (D), while the 2 remaining second-placed teams and 2 best third-placed teams in another pot (E). Teams from the same group in the Group Phase cannot be drawn against each other in the Quarter-Finals. 

This stage of the competition is played in a knockout format and the draw will produce an Olympic bracket for the road to the gold medal.

To be crowned Olympic champion, a team has to play 6 games - 3 in the Group Phase and 3 in the Final Phase (Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, Gold Medal Game), instead of 8 as in past tournaments.

For more information, consult pages 42-45 of the FIBA Internal Regulations - Book 2 (Competitions).

Men's and Women's 3x3 Basketball Tournaments

Pool Phase

In both tournaments, the 8 teams are in one single pool and play all other teams over the course of 4 days (2 pool games per day on Days 1, 2 and 3 and last pool game on Day 4). Teams ranked seventh and eighth in the pool will take no further part in the competition.

Knockout Rounds

The teams placed first and second qualify directly for the Semi-Finals, while those that finish third, fourth, fifth and sixth meet in 2 qualifying Quarter-Finals at the end of Day 4.

The Semi-Finals and Medal Games take place on Day 5.

FIBA