THE United Nations (UN) general assembly adopted on Friday by consensus the Philippine-initiated resolution on World Basketball Day during its plenary at the UN headquarters in New York.
Acknowledging the global presence of basketball and its impact in and across global spheres of commerce, peace and diplomacy, the resolution decided to proclaim Dec. 21 as World Basketball Day.
See Fiba World Cup attendance record now belongs to the Philippines
With the resolution, which was led by the Philippines, Indonesia, Nicaragua and Peru and co-sponsored by 77 countries, basketball became the first team sport to be recognized by the UN General Assembly with its own international day.
In his introductory speech before the UN General Assembly, Philippine Ambassador to the United Nations Antonio M. Lagdameo stated that “as a globally recognized sport, basketball transcends borders, cultures, and languages. It serves as a unifying force where people from different backgrounds can come together, bond and communicate with each other, creating connections and breaking down barriers, and thereby contributing to peace.”
“The adoption of the resolution is very timely, as the 2023 Fiba World Cup of Basketball has just started today, 25 August, in three major cities in Asia – Manila, Jakarta, and Tokyo. It is an honor for my own country, the Philippines, to host this global competition because basketball is in our national DNA,” Lagdameo said.
Lagdameo noted that the Philippines has “more basketball courts per capita than anywhere in the world. In 2019, the Philippines had the highest basketball popularity index score globally. In 1975, the Philippines established Asia’s first and oldest professional basketball league, the Philippine Basketball Association, which remains active and competitive to this day.”
Basketball was played for the first time on Dec. 21, 1891 at the International YMCA Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, after Dr. James Naismith, a Canadian physical education instructor, developed the game to keep his students active during the winter months.
The resolution invited all member states, organizations of the United Nations system, other international and regional organizations, the private sector and civil society, including non-governmental organizations, individuals and other relevant stakeholders to observe World Basketball Day in an appropriate manner and in accordance with national priorities, and to disseminate the advantages of basketball for all, including through educational and public awareness-raising activities.
Basketball has grown to become one of the most popular and widely played sports in the world, with at least 450 million people worldwide playing basketball today according to Fiba figures. Basketball has also been a part of the Olympic program since its introduction at the 1936 Berlin Olympics and enjoys a strong presence in North America, especially the United States, Europe, Asia, Africa and other regions.
The resolution also commended the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia, Japan for hosting the International Basketball Federation Basketball World Cup 2023, and encouraged the relevant authorities to exert every effort to ensure that the Basketball World Cup 2023 will leave a lasting legacy for peace and development around the world.
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