Basketball South Africa bungles hosting of African championships

Less than two weeks before the U18 Basketball African Championship in Johannesburg, South Africa has yet to announce the national team, the venues for the matches, or the plans to accommodate teams from 12 countries across the continent, leaving young players across the country in limbo.

The tournament, officially titled the FIBA U18 AfroBasket, will be hosted in Johannesburg from 1 to 14 September.

According to GroundUp, Basketball South Africa (BSA), the organisers of the tournament, announced training squads for the South African national boys' and girls' U18 teams on 21 July 2023.

The announcement was made in a letter addressed to all BSA members signed by the BSA secretary general, Sibongile Fondini.

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These players were picked from the inter-provincial U17 tournament in Bloemfontein in 2023.

Squads consist of 25 boys and 25 girls. But a final squad of 12 players with three reserves for each team is yet to be announced.

The parent of one of the players chosen for the training squad says players still don't know if they've been selected for the national team, or what plans have been made for accommodation or travel expenses if they do come.

The parent asked to remain anonymous out of fear that speaking out against the BSA could result in their child's selection chances being affected.

The national squads were meant to be chosen after training camps in Johannesburg.

But BSA bungled the arrangements, giving players just a week to pitch up in Johannesburg in March, and backtracking on promises to pay travel expenses for players from outside Johannesburg, according to a letter sent by the Western Cape Basketball Association (WCBA)