The Basketball Federation of India was formed in the year 1950. However, basketball was already wide spread in India, that’s why the first ever National Championships for men occured in the year 1936, which means that the first National Championships happened prior to the formation of the Basketball Federation of India.
After two years, the Indian national basketball team, which is also know as the “Young Cagers” became a member of the International Basketball Federation, or FIBA.
The Role of the Basketball Federation of India
The Basketball Federation of India, or the BFI, is the one responsible in governing and controlling not just the minor and major basketball leagues in India, but also the formation and the completion of the Indian national men’s basketball team and the Indian national women’s basketball team that will represent the country in the major basketball Asian and international events.
This means that they are held responsible for the required training camps, workouts, and the like of the national basketball team of India. They are also the ones responsible for the development and the promotion of basketball at all levels possible.
Arjuna Award in Basketball
In the year 1961, the government of India in cooperation with the BFI, instituted the Arjuna Awards, which aims to recognize players with an outstanding achievement in national sports. Some of the basketball players that was awarded with Arjuna Award are: Shri Sarvjit Singh, Shri Khushi Ram, Shri Guardil Singh, and Shri Hari Dutt Kapri.
The Preparation
The Basketball Federation of India conducted a National Coaching Camp and Foreign Exposures so as to prepare the players of the Indian national men’s basketball team and the Indian national women’s basketball team in the Asian Games. The Basketball Federation of India conducted bothe the National Coaching Camp and the Foreign Exposures because the Federation believes that basketball is a sport played by a team and the whole team should practice together to improve their works on offensive and defensive strategies and team unity.
The NBA and Mahindra in March 2010
Just last March of this year, in cooperation with the Basketball Federation of India announced the partnership of two great associations for the betterment of the basketball in India.
Governed by the Basketball Federation of India, the Mahindra group, which is considered as one of the largest and most respected companies in India, and the NBA or the National Basketball Association of the United States of America joined forces to launch a new multi-city community-based five on five recreational basketball league in India.
The recreational basketball league starts in April of every year and will last for just about seven weeks, but with just seven weeks, the young enthusiasts will be able to learn, and at the same time apply those skills in the game proper.
The recreational basketball league will be played through the process of round robin. The teams will be able to play once every week, and the champions of the league will undergo a knock-out tournament at the end of the regular season in each city that participated.
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