LONDON (2010 FIBA World Championship) - Great Britain's basketball players, coaches and fans are not the only ones hoping that the country will receive a wild card to play at the 2010 FIBA World Championship in Turkey.

One of the country's Olympic legends, Sir Steve Redgrave, has voiced his support for British basketball.

Redgrave, who won gold medals in rowing competitions at five consecutive Olympic Games, said: "The ability to compete against the leading nations in your sport is imperative to individual and team development.

"The British basketball team has shown amazing growth in the last three years, which I witnessed myself at The O2 in 2008 and now I think three years out from the Olympics is the right time for them to step up to the world stage."

Redgrave added that he would like to see Britain take on sides like Olympic champions Team USA and one of Britain’s rivals in all sports, Australia.

FIBA will announce the recipients of the four wild cards in less than two weeks when their central board convenes in Istanbul.

Great Britain had hoped to qualify directly for next year’s 24-team event in Turkey but they crashed out of the EuroBasket in Poland after consecutive defeats to Slovenia, Spain and Serbia in Group C.

The Brits were without their leading player, Luol Deng, in Poland due to injury.

An Olympic medal winner from another sport, triple jumper Phillips Idowu, has also expressed the hope that Britain will receive a wild card.

Idowu, who won silver in Beijing, said: "I am a huge basketball fan and I want to see the GB team being as successful as possible.

“A place at the World Championships would provide a great experience ahead of London 2012 where they have a real opportunity to unite a nation behind their campaign."

Darren Bent, who plays for England's national football team, is also holding his breath and hoping for a wild card.

The Sunderland star is a friend of Britain power forward Pop Mensah-Bonsu and he said: "The guys have really come on and proved they can play against top sides. It would be great if Pops and the rest of the team get a chance to prove themselves on a world stage."

The performance director for British Basketball, Chris Spice, believes competing at the FIBA World Championship would be a major help for the national team as it prepares to host the 2012 Olympics.

He said in a British Basketball statement: "In many ways we, GB, find ourselves in yet another tough group as we bid for a wild card, only this time the players cannot physically step onto a court to play for victory.

"We hope that our rapid progression over the past few years, coupled with our efforts in Poland and continued desire to prove ourselves for the 2012 Olympics, will put us in a strong position to be considered for Turkey.

"With a fully fit and available roster, we believe that we can put forward a valid campaign for the World Championships. And of course, the only way GB can prove its credentials against the best teams in the world is to play them."

The British men's and women's teams were told by FIBA when London was awarded the Olympics that they needed to prove their competitiveness before being allowed to take up spots in the tournaments that are normally reserved for host nations.

At the time, Britain's men were in EuroBasket Division B but they immediately won promotion and then took a major step forward by qualifying for this year's EuroBasket in Poland.

FIBA