London Olympics 2012: Team GB's Olympic hopes still up in the air
The will they/won't they saga surrounding Great Britain's
participation in the 2012 London Olympics won't be resolved until next
year.
Fanhouse is reporting that Fiba secretary-general Patrick Baumann has said they will wait until Spring/Summer 2011 before a final decision is made.
Chris Finch's men and Tom Maher's women both secured places in next year's tournament, however this isn't enough for the sport's governing body.
Basketball is the only sport on the Olympic calendar that doesn't guarantee the host nation a spot at the Games.
Finch believes his side has done enough to earn its place at the table.
He said: "I can't change what happens off the court, but we've met every performance mark they've laid down and we believe we're entitled to our rightful spot by the way we've played.
"I'm really proud of what our guys have done."
In a conversation with the BBC before Team GB's successful qualifications, Baumann outlined what he felt needed to be done to secure a spot.
He said: "What needs to go hand-in-hand is that the performance needs to grow over time and we need to know that the basketball family in the UK has a clear view of where it wants to go when the Games are finished.
"How is the game going to be structured? What are they going to be doing over the next four to eight years to make themselves competitive with other nations?
"If these things come together, there's no reason why GB should not be at the Olympics Games."
Following Thursday's clinching win over Bosnia and Herzegovina he said: "Fiba congratulates the British teams on qualifying for the European finals.
"They have made good progress and are now among the top 16 in Europe.
"We look forward to seeing further progress, both on and off the court."
So what does it all mean? No-one seems to know and that may be the most frustrating thing.
Does London have to host more NBA games? Does the Government need to put basketball hoops up in every park in the nation?
The only certainty seems to be a nervous year for Team GB and its fans. Original Article >>
Source : http://blogs.mirror.co.uk
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