DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (2014 FIBA U17 World Championship for Men) - The draw for the 2014 FIBA U17 World Championship was held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Wednesday, ahead of this summer’s tournament that will take place in the emirate from 8 to 16 August.

The 16 teams, representing all five of FIBA's Continental Zones, were divided into four groups of four teams for the Preliminary Round, which is played in a standard round-robin format.

Group A: Angola, Greece, USA, Philippines
Group B: Japan, France, Canada, Australia
Group C: Puerto Rico, UAE, Italy, Spain
Group D: Argentina, Serbia, China, Egypt

It is the first time a FIBA World Championship - senior or junior - is staged in the Middle East.

The FIBA U17 World Championship is where the stars of tomorrow are born.

The USA are the two-time defending champions, having won the two editions of the tournament to date. In 2010, they beat Poland to the title in the inaugural championship in Hamburg, Germany and then triumphed against Australia in Kaunas, Lithuania two years ago.

The success and interest in the first two U17s was so high that, starting in 2014, the tournament will consist of a 16-team field - the same competition format as the FIBA U19 World Championship.

Go to www.fiba.basketball/dubai2014 for all the latest on the 2014 FIBA U17 World Championship and click here for the tournament's competition system.

FIBA

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About FIBA
FIBA (fiba.com) - the world governing body for basketball - is an independent association formed by 213 National Basketball Federations throughout the world. It is recognised as the sole competent authority in basketball by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

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