The sixth annual Future Stars International Tournament returns this weekend, featuring five teams of international calibre competing as part of their preparations for the summer’s European Championships.
As in previous years, there will also be a coaching clinic, led by Ante Nazor, who has been at the helm of one of the most talented young generations in Croatian basketball history, and a FIBA endorsed 3×3 competition with the winners of the open category being flown out to Bucharest, Romania, for a chance to win €4000.
The quality of teams on show in the tournament starting on Friday is arguably its highest in recent years, featuring the U18 National teams from Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sweden, England, and host team London United Harefield Academy.
Founder and tournament organiser Jack Majewski says it’s more about than just putting on an event, but exposing the UK to the European game.
“I have repeated on countless occasions that without frequent and regular contact with European basketball, the English game will never register on the radar on mainstream sporting public and media,” he said. “I’m really glad that the 6th edition of Future Stars is graced by presence of a current European Champion, Croatia alongside two other Division A teams England and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Sweden has got one of the most talented generations in that age group and is looking for a speedy return to Division A this summer.”
The England 1995 born generation will be on display, featuring the likes of Luke Nelson (UCI commit, EBL Division 1 Player of the Year), Mo Soluade (Unicaja Malaga), Kingsley Okoroh (Findlay Prep/Derby Trailblazers), Jules Christian Dang Akodo (Union Olimpija, ’96 born) and many more.
The same squad recently put in a solid performance at the NIJT London, competing against some of the most talented club sides in Europe.
“I’m also very glad that there is a visible improvement in the standard of the English junior national team which at last will play among the European elite and has increased significantly their contacts with the rest of Europe,” continued Majewski. “That was perfectly obvious during NIJT, where the English team was an equal partner for top European outfits. There is also a very encouraging trend in England Basketball which invests quite heavily in junior basketball on an international level. This is the only way to start unleashing the potential which this country always had but somehow failed to capitalize on.”
The tournament will be moving to Surrey Sports Park in Guildford for the first time, taking place from Thursday 27th June to Sunday 30th and is entirely free for spectators.
Please see below for the full tournament schedule;
The tournament structure is round robin with all teams playing each other. After round robin stage top two teams will play in the final, third and fourth teams in the table will play in the 3rd place game.
Thursday 27th June
19:00 England v London United Harefield Academy
Friday 28th June
12:00 London United Harefield Academy v Bosnia & Herzegovina
14:00 Croatia v Sweden
16:00 Bosnia & Herzegovina v England
18:00 Oveido Baloncesto Scouting Session
20:00 England v Sweden
Saturday 29th June
13:00 Sweden v Bosnia & Herzegovina
15:00 Croatia v England
17:00 Sweden v London United Harefield Academy
20:00 Bosnia & Herzegovina v Croatia
Sunday 30th June
15:00 3rd / 4th Place
17:00 Final
The Future Stars International Tournament is designed to showcase top level U18 talent from across Europe and beyond. It is strategically placed directly before the U18 European Championships making us the perfect form of preparation before this tournament.
The tournament has in the past brought together the junior National teams from Spain, France, Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Poland, Sweden, Israel and England. Such talented players as Jan Vesely, Dario Saric, Tomas Satoransky, and Alejandro Abrines have all showcased their talents at Future Stars before going on to become internationally renowned senior players.
Future Stars sees the return of a 3×3 FIBA endorsed competition which will be open to over 150 teams who will compete in U14, U16, U18 and Open age categories for both male and female competitions.
This year’s event is run in conjunction with BBL Foundation and Proj3kt 3on3 and offers a chance for everyone to get involved and compete against the top players from, the UK, France and Benelux region to qualify for the FIBA World Tour Challenger in Romania with flights and accommodation included for the chance to win €4000.
The 3×3 FIBA competition will take place on Sunday 30th July simultaneously to the final day of competition of the International Tournament to bring together thousands of enthusiasts from different sides of the basketball world. Find out more information here.
On Friday 28th June between 6.00-7.30 Future Stars is inviting young and aspiring basketball players from Greater London to participate in a training session run by coaching staff from Spanish LEB Gold side, Oviedo Basketball Club. The session will be conducted by Oviedo Basketball Club [LEB Gold] Head Coach Guillermo Arenas Milan and Director of Basketball Academy Fernando García Céspedes and is designed for young players who would like to continue their careers in Europe.
The session is completely free but limited to 30 players. Contact Future Stars for more information on [email protected].
On Saturday 29th June, Future Stars working in conjunction with England Basketball, will hold the annual National Coaching Clinic at Surrey Sports Park.
The clinic will have coaching and development of young players at its centre and provides a platform for coaches with a proven track record across Europe to share the secrets of their great success.
“Even after being over 20 years in this country I fail to understand how in England you could get coaching qualifications afte r16 hours of fairly basic training while in the rest of Europe you must study for 4 or 5 years and obtain a Masters Degree in Sports Science or other sport related course,” commented Jack Majewski. “Coach education is absolutely pivotal to further the development of basketball in this country, the importance of which cannot be overestimated.
“I’m really thrilled that in the last couple of years we have managed to build a large group of coaches who regularly attend our clinics. After being quite shocked and almost overwhelmed by the presence of around 170 coaches last year, we hope that even more will attend this year’s conference.
“I strongly believe that the concept of the National Team coaches being key speakers works perfectly and adds to the cohesiveness between speakers and delegates. This time round we have included an opportunity for delegates to meet and talk to speakers in informal surroundings. This will be a fantastic opportunity for delegates to exchange their experiences and build contacts with top European coaches working with young athletes.”
The Coaching Clinic will be led by Ante Nazor, who has led one of the most talented young generations in Croatian basketball history. Ante will be supported by Nenad Markovic , Head coach of Bosnia and Herzegovina who will speak on Individual Offensive Skills. By popular demand the 2013 Future Stars Coaching Clinic will also see the return of Olle Lunden who continues at the helm of Swedish U18 Basketball. In addition, Kay Bluemel will share his experience as Head Coach of the German U18 team. In addition Head Coach of Oveido Club Baloncesto (LEB Gold), Guillermo Arenas Milan wil be speaking on fast break and transition offense.
The Coaching Clinic is suitable for aspiring coaches at every level, the cost of the clinic has been set at a very affordable £30 per delegate which includes a commemorative t-shirt and educational materials. For full details and schedule, check out the Future Stars website.
Will you be attending?
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