Maxibasketball World Champs In Christchurch

Media Statement Wednesday 24 September 2003

Maxibasketball World Championships confirmed for Christchurch

Christchurch has been confirmed as the host city for the 8th FIMBA World Maxibasketball Championships. The Championships will be held in Christchurch from 22 - 30 January 2005.

Maxibasketball, which is played in more than 60 countries, involves teams of Masters age grade basketballers, with age categories starting from 35 years for men and 30 years for women.

The announcement that the next event had been awarded to Christchurch was made at the 2003 Championships in Orlando, Florida on Wednesday 10 September. Previous Maxibasketball World Championship events have been held in Buenos Aires, Las Vegas, Helsinki and Ljubljana, Slovenia.

The 2005 event will attract about 100 teams from around the world and ten from throughout New Zealand, bringing between 1500 and 2000 people into the city for the nine day tournament. This is expected to generate an economic benefit, running into the millions of dollars for the city and the region.

The organiser for this event, Neil Blanchfield (Great Events Ltd) says he is thrilled to have finally secured it for the city after three years of work. Mr Blanchfield approached Christchurch City Council in late 2000 to assist with the bid for the 2005 championships. “Great Events is grateful to the Leisure Unit at Council for supporting our bid and helping to secure this exciting masters event for the city,” he said. “This further enhances Christchurch’s reputation for attracting and hosting large international sporting events.”

ENDS

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