Celebrating the Americas Mini Basketball Convention

LEÓN (Mexico) — The 2023 Mini Basketball Convention of the Americas was held in León, Mexico from November 1-5, organized jointly by the FIBA Foundation and ADEMEBA, the Mexican National Federation.

17 delegates from Latin-American National Federations attended the convention, plus a Special Olympics representative. In addition, roughly 3,500 kids participated in a festival featuring 140 teams from all over Mexico. The festival was organized by ADEMEBA with the support of Comu de León

“I want to convey my most sincere congratulations to the FIBA Foundation and FIBA for their great support so that Mexico can once again host the 2023 Americas Mini Basketball Convention, celebrating Basketball For Good internationally”, said Dr Modesto Robledo, President of COCABA and ADEMEBA.

“The city of León, Guanajuato received more than 1,400 boys and girls from all over the country with great hospitality. It was a celebration for children where they competed in a healthy and positive environment, improving the health of our youth and strengthening the prevention of childhood obesity through basketball. ADEMEBA will continue to be committed to promoting these events in a strategic and permanent manner for the benefit of the children and youth of our country.”

The annual convention, which took place in Buenos Aires last year, aims to develop grassroots basketball for boys and girls aged 5 to 12. Through the FIBA Foundation’s Basketball For Good initiative, the Convention pushes forward education on the importance of good health and well-being among participants.

“Mini Basketball provides us with tools for social development and learning, promoting a culture of citizenship day-by-day,” said Yenny Pinilla, a delegate of the Colombian Basketball Federation. “Let's continue to impact our boys and girls with love, and we will have extraordinary citizens of the world.”

The program included both theoretical and practical sessions, plus interactive workshops led by the FIBA Foundation and facilitated by Guillermo Calvo to strengthen the Basketball For Good Movement in Latin America. The content was delivered to further accompany the delegates within their journey of leading the Mini Basketball charge in their respective countries.

On Saturday, coaches of teams participating in the festival, as well as parents of the players, took part in a Congress where they were educated on their role in keeping children in sport and the FIBA Foundation’s Mini Basketball philosophy.

The convention ended with delegates developing their Mini Basketball plan for 2024 within accountability groups.

“This Convention was a continuation of our efforts to provide tools to enlarge the FIBA Family and widen the Mini Basketball and Basketball For Good community,” said Theren Bullock Jr., Senior Manager of FIBA Foundation. “The delegates once again showed tremendous commitment, passion, and grit to reach these goals in their respective countries. We will now continue to build on this and guide them along their respective paths and further use basketball as a tool to create social impact around the world.”

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About Mini Basketball:

The FIBA Foundation’s Mini Basketball program is a global Basketball For Good initiative to improve the health and well-being of 5-12-year-old children and to fight physical inactivity and childhood obesity. It is an inclusive grassroots basketball movement addressed to girls and boys and their parents and uses fun & game-based learning.