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15 - 16
July 2017
14/07/2017
Press Release

Saskatoon ready on eve of FIBA 3x3 World Tour 2017

SASKATOON (FIBA 3x3 World Tour 2017) - The sixth edition of the FIBA 3x3 World Tour - the flagship event of the 3x3 professional circuit - starts on Saturday in Saskatoon, Canada and will visit a total of eight cities with 7 Masters leading up to the Bloomage Beijing Final on October 21-22.

Twelve teams will battle it out over two days in the heart of Saskatoon to secure the first ticket on offer to qualify for the Final.

The reigning champions Ljubljana (SLO) and another 3 teams from the Top 10 in the FIBA 3x3 Federation Ranking will battle it out in the "Paris of the Prairies" in front of the iconic Delta Bessborough hotel.

Local favorites Team Saskatoon (CAN) are currently 3rd in the Team Ranking while Liman (SRB) rank 8th and have shined in qualifying tournaments (finished 1,2 and 3 in the 3 challengers they played). Hamamatsu (JPN) finished 2nd overall at the World Tour last season and ranked 9th in the Ranking before the start of the tournament.

Pool action will take place on July 15, with the top two teams from each pool earning a direct ticket to the Quarter-Finals. The Knock-Out Rounds - culminating with the final - will be held on July 16. Only the winners of each Masters earn a direct slot to the World Tour Final. The rest will get their ticket based on the World Tour standings after the last Masters.

The number one 3x3 team in the world (and 2014 and 2015 World Tour winners) Novi Sad Al Wahda (UAE) qualified for the Saskatoon Masters but were unable to obtain a visa in time for the event. They have however already clinched their ticket to the 6 other Masters: Utsunomiya (JPN), Prague (CZE), Lausanne (SUI), Debrecen (HUN), Chengdu (CHN) and Mexico City (MEX).

The full rosters can be found on the official event website.

Fans can follow the #3x3WT on FacebookInstagramTwitter, Sina Weibo, Tencent and Snapchat at @FIBA3x3 and watch the games live both on YouTube.com/FIBA3x3 and Facebook.com/FIBA3x3.

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ABOUT FIBA 3x3
Exciting, urban and innovative, 3x3 is inspired by several forms of streetball played worldwide and is considered the world’s number one urban team sport. Steered by FIBA, games see two teams of three players face off on a basketball half-court.

It was played successfully for the first time in international competition at the 2010 Youth Olympic Games in Singapore and since then has benefited from the launch of a yearly city-based FIBA 3x3 World Tour (www.fiba.basketball/3x3worldtour) and national-team FIBA 3x3 World Cup.

On June 9 2017, 3x3 was added to the Olympic Program, starting from the Tokyo 2020 Games.

Nike is FIBA 3x3's Founding Partner.

FIBA 3x3 events are played on Sport Court's floors with Schelde backstops and benefit from Wilson's innovative and specially-made ball for 3x3.

For further information about 3x3, visit fiba3x3.basketball, FIBA 3x3 accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube or contact 3x3@fiba.com.