Basketball Fiji’s Local Organising Committee for the FIBA Oceania U19 Basketball Championship have confirmed that they will be creating a Games Village at the University of South Pacific by accommodating teams in the student residences on campus.

Negotiations for the accommodation are well underway and both USP and Basketball Fiji are excited at the opportunities that this partnership presents.

Not only will all ten international teams, including Fiji’s own U19 male and female teams, be accommodated on campus, but they will also eat at the university’s cafeteria.

Chief Operations Officer, Mr. Laisiasa Puamau, stated that this decision was made in the best interests of all the participants. “The teams have greater security and accessibility to the games venue by staying at the university. The Vodafone Arena is very close, and as is Damodar City. Everything is very easy to get to.”

“However, the primary benefit of having a games village is the atmosphere. The teams will get to know one another over the course of the week and will have the opportunity to learn more about the cultures of the other nations who will be competing.”

The FIBA Oceania Under-19 Championship begins on December 1-6^th, though teams will begin arriving as early as the 27^th of November.

Catherine Grawich