- 16 Provincial Teams in China Will Compete in Jr. NBA World Championship China Regional for Opportunity to Compete on Global Stage –
- NBA World Championship to be Played at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort Near Orlando Aug. 7-12, 2018 –
BEIJING, Jan.31, 2018 – NBA China and the Chinese Ministry of Education today announced the Jr. NBA World Championship China Regional, a qualifying tournament for the Jr. NBA World Championship, a first-of-its kind global youth basketball tournament for the top boys and girls teams ages 14 and under from around the world.
The Jr. NBA World Championship will feature boys and girls divisions, each comprised of 16 regional champions (eight U.S. and eight international teams) that will receive all-expenses-paid trips to compete in the event Aug. 7-12, 2018 at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando, Fla. Located at Walt Disney World Resort, the world-class venue regularly hosts elite and recreational youth sports competitions.
The Jr. NBA World Championship will align with the NBA and USA Basketball Youth Guidelines, which promote health and wellness in several ways including recommending age-appropriate limits on the number of games that youth should play. All coaches participating in the Jr. NBA World Championship will also be required to be trained and licensed. Youth at the Jr. NBA World Championship will not only compete on the court but will also receive off-court life skills education and participate in NBA Cares community service projects.
The Jr. NBA World Championship China Regional will tip off in April with 32 boys and girls teams from 16 provinces competing across four tournaments in Beijing, Chengdu, Hangzhou and Guangzhou.
The winners and finalists advance to the Jr. NBA World Championship China Regional Finals in May. A joint committee comprised of Chinese Ministry of Education and NBA experts will select the 10 best performing players in the tournament from each gender group to represent China in the Jr. NBA World Championship.
Cleveland Cavaliers guard and three-time NBA Champion Dwyane Wade and Los Angeles Sparks forward and WNBA Champion Candace Parker will serve as lead global ambassadors for the Jr. NBA World Championship.
The Jr. NBA World Championship will tip off in spring 2018 with U.S. and international competitions across various regional sites. The winning boys and girls teams from eight newly-created U.S. regional tournaments (Central, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Northeast, Northwest, South, Southeast and West), plus teams representing eight international regions (Africa & Middle East, Asia Pacific, Canada, China, Europe, India, Mexico and South America), will compete in the culminating event at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.
The international competition will leverage the Jr. NBA’s extensive global reach. During the 2017-18 season, the NBA will reach more than 26 million youth in 71 countries through a variety of camps, clinics, skills challenges, league play and outreach events.
The Jr. NBA World Championship will be separated into U.S. and international brackets that include round-robin competition followed by single-elimination boys and girls tournaments. Winners of the U.S. and international brackets will play in the championship games on Aug. 12.
In October 2014, NBA China and the Chinese Ministry of Education announced a comprehensive multiyear partnership. The partnership was extended in 2016 during the US-China High-Level Consultation on People-to-People Exchange (CPE) in Beijing to promote basketball education and youth development in China. During the 2017-18 school year, more than 2 million students from 2000 schools across 15 provinces and municipalities participated in basketball classes using the curriculum jointly developed by the Chinese Ministry of Education and the NBA incorporating fitness and basketball development in elementary, middle and high schools throughout China.
About NBA China
The NBA’s entity that conducts all of the league’s businesses in Greater China was formed in January 2008 after its first office opened in Hong Kong in 1992. The NBA currently has relationships with a network of television and digital media outlets in China, including a 30-year partnership with CCTV. The league hosts hundreds of touring basketball events for fans, conducts community enrichment programs, and maintains marketing partnerships with a combination of world-class China-based corporations and U.S.-based multinationals.
NBA licensed apparel and footwear are available through retail and authorized online stores on e-commerce and social media platforms, including NBAStore.cn, Tmall.com, JD.com, NBAStore.hk and NBAStore.tw. In 2004, the NBA became the first American professional sports league to play games in China. Following NBA China Games 2017, 14 NBA teams have played 24 games in Greater China.
CONTACT:
Cindy Jin, +86 10 52008328, cjin@nba.com