Finding ways to facilitate the growth of local basketball took Cayman Islands Basketball Association president Collin Anglin all the way to Bahrain to an international conference on the sport.
Anglin was among a record 167 national representatives attending the International Basketball Federation Mid-Term Congress from 16-17 May.
Among the topics covered were women in basketball, 3×3 basketball, the federation’s digital transformation, Olympic Solidarity and the FIBA Plus Initiative to empower national federations.
In particular, Anglin told the Compass that the discussions on the tremendous growth in 3×3 basketball globally left him hopeful for Cayman’s future in this format, and that one of the “amazing things” about the sport is that “it has actually given smaller countries … a level playing field”.
He added, “Over the last two years, we’ve gone from being ranked 130th … to now 55th in the world, and we’re talking about over 200 national federations across the world, so I definitely think that we are on the right path, and the future continues to look bright for us.”
Countries with small populations like Cayman normally face challenges in cultivating the high numbers of elite players needed to qualify for the Olympics and other major tournaments, so discussing strategies for getting on an Olympic pathway proved another benefit of the congress.
Anglin also pointed to the opportunities for networking that the event offered.
“I was able to speak with several European federation presidents and get a good understanding of how their systems work, how they develop and maintain professional basketball systems … so it was very interesting being able to hear their perspectives as well as some of the challenges that they face and how they go about trying to mitigate some of those challenges.”
Anglin was also able to talk to representatives of USA basketball about a future CIBA basketball facility in Cayman, telling the Compass that CIBA recently leased a piece of land from the government which they plan to use to build their own basketball facility.
That discussion focused on how USA basketball would be able to assist with the plans for the project, which will help with expanding youth programmes, increasing tournament hosting opportunities, and maximising development of Cayman’s national teams.
“We will also be able to implement programmes that we have not been able to, such as wheelchair basketball, due to us not having sufficient access to a facility,” Anglin added.
He added that he also connected with other basketball associations about Cayman hosting 3×3 and 5×5 basketball training camps.
“For me, the most significant takeaway from the mid-term congress was that there are a plethora of tools and resources from the governing body of the sport that are there to really help and support national federations, and by us continuing to be exposed to these tools and to continue to learn more about them, it’s definitely going to enhance the way that we operate and the opportunities that we can provide for our members,” Anglin said.
Among the next steps for Cayman Islands Basketball Association are focusing on the development of coaches and officials, youth and women’s basketball, and international participation.
Anglin said that attending events such as the congress helps him look at the big picture as it connects like-minded individuals who are also striving hard to develop the sport and its athletes in their country.
