The first leg of the Youthtown 3×3 Quest Tour 2022 tips off in West Auckland this weekend, with teams vying for the chance to earn valuable FIBA ranking points while participating in one of the world’s most exciting and fasting-growing sports.
The first Quest Tour event will take place at The Trusts Arena in Henderson on Saturday 15 January 2022, with free entry for all teams across the under 15, under 17, under 19 and Open age-groups in both men’s and women’s categories.
BBNZ General Manager Events, David Huxford says that 3×3 – also known as street ball or street basketball – is now the largest urban team sport in the world.
“Thanks to its inclusion in both the 2020 Summer Olympics and 2022 Commonwealth Games, 3×3 basketball is continuing its rapid ascension on the world stage, and New Zealand is one of the countries at the forefront of its continued growth,” says David.
“We’re excited for our first Quest Tour event this weekend, it’s going to be fun for both the players and the spectators. It’s also a good platform for aspiring 3×3 athletes to catch the attention of our New Zealand national selectors, as they look to identify talent for future 3×3 national events including the Commonwealth Games later this year.”
One of the teams registered for the Open Men’s Grade in Saturday’s event is CB 3.0, led by their captain – and veteran 3×3 Quest Tour player – Chris McIntosh.
Chris says this will be his seventh year participating in the Quest Tour and it’s something that he and his friends always look forward to.
“It’s a great excuse to play basketball with and against friends and the environment is quite cool, it’s kind of like a streetball vibe where you’ve got music playing and crowds cheering you on in the background – which always makes it fun to be part of,” says Chris.
“For me it’s another basketball event that I just can’t say no to, it’s free which is incredible and I’ve been fortunate enough to win a couple of these tournaments, including the Quest Tour last year.”
Chris says that he got his first taste of 3×3 basketball playing on the winning team in a 3×3 University competition several years ago, which allowed him to play in a tournament in China. One of the biggest drawcards of the Quest Tour for him, is that the winner gets the opportunity to play 3×3 in another country.
“That experience, playing basketball in a different country which I hadn’t been to before, kind of gave me the bug to do it again – so when I first found out the 3×3 Quest Tour gives the winner the opportunity to go overseas, it was exactly what I was after.
“So I’m looking forward to this weekend, it’s one of the first organised basketball tournaments I’ve been able to play in since lockdown.”
At a Glance:
- The first Youthtown 3×3 Quest Tour 2022 launches this Sat 15 Jan at Henderson’s Trusts Arena
- The event is free for players and spectators, with Covid restrictions in place to ensure everyone is kept safe. Teams are encouraged to register online – via nz.basketball/3×3/3×3-quest-tour – prior to the day
- This is the first of six 3×3 Quest Tour events being held around New Zealand over the next three months
- Follow the event on Basketball New Zealand’s Social media accounts on @BasketballNZ via Facebook, Instagram, Twitter.
