Kwesi Mugisa, Staff Reporter
THE LOCAL organising committee of the 18th Caribbean Basketball Championships (CBC) finds itself about $7 million short with just 18 days left to go until the scheduled start of the tournament.
KFC, Gatorade, Digicel, Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica, Locker Room Sports and Ranger Security are sponsors already on-board, but Kinetic Sports Management, the team responsible for that aspect of the event, still finds itself only about halfway towards the projected $15 million budget.
The has apparently received renewed competition for sponsorship from the West Indies cricket team but the major culprit is the world's premier sporting event, the World Cup of football, which kicks off on June 9 in Germany.
ALTERED DATES
With an expected TV audience of more than a billion viewers in more than 200 countries, it would seem commercial suicide to attempt to hold any sporting event at all during this period and, according to Kinetic's director in charge of negotiations, Roderick Gordon that was not the plan.
"The tournament was not scheduled to be at the start of the World Cup but because of other tournaments and commitments the date had to be altered," Gordon said at the event's official launch at The Hilton yesterday.
"At the same time, the Jamaica Basketball Association has to be commended for honouring its commitment to hosting the tournament in such a difficult year," he said of the event which will run from June 12-18.
Jamaica Basketball Association (JBA) vice-president Capt. Clifton Lumsden said the championships would not just be about basketball and organisers were trying to incorporate the World Cup into proceedings.
"We will not just be staging a basketball tournament but an event which we expected to be a highly entertaining one overall," Lumsden said.
According to Lumsden, there are plans in place for a big screen inside the National Indoor Sports Centre (NISC) and internet access for people who want to keep a track of the World Cup. Match times have also been scheduled bearing the World Cup match schedule in mind and there will be a nightly entertainment package.
CORPORATE SUPPORT
Lumsden also took the time out to appeal to corporate Jamaica.
"We want to appeal to corporate Jamaica to come forward and lend their support to the hosting of this event," he said.
"It is of value to us as a nation and to our young men and women who have started playing the game. We can boast that only track and field offers scholarships to more young men and women than we do," he said. "Our ultimate objective is to be in Beijing, China in 2008 for the next Olympics."
The training camp for the national teams will begin on June 2.
The coaches for the men's team are Julian Dunkley and Alfred Remikie, while the women will be coached by Paulette King and Loretta Sandison.
Another highlight of the tournament could be an appearance from Chicago Bulls star Ben Gordon, who was born in Jamaica, as a patron of the event.
