Yerevan to host FIBA U16 EuroBasket: Armenia targeting victory in Division C

The FIBA U16 EuroBasket Division C will take place in Yerevan from July 4 to 12. The tournament will be held at the Sports Management Center, with Armenia’s U16 national team entering the home championship with an ambitious goal — to fight for the title.

Ahead of the start of the competition, a press conference was held in Yerevan with the participation of Armenian Basketball Federation Secretary General Artur Nazaryan and Narine Shahbazyan, Head of the Sports Policy Department at Armenia’s Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport.

Yerevan will host 24 games at the U16 European Championship

According to Artur Nazaryan, a total of 24 games will be played during the tournament. Six of them will feature Armenia’s U16 national team. Almost all participating teams have already arrived in Yerevan, with the Monaco delegation expected to join the tournament before the opening games.

The matches will be streamed on FIBA’s official YouTube channel.

“The U16 European Championship Division C will start tomorrow, July 4, in Yerevan. We hope to see Armenia’s national team in the final and to give basketball fans a major celebration for the second year in a row,” said ABF Secretary General Artur Nazaryan.

For Armenia, this is already the second major international basketball tournament hosted in recent years. Last year, Yerevan hosted the FIBA U20 EuroBasket Division B, as well as Armenia’s World Cup qualifying game against Norway.

ABF enjoys FIBA’s trust and plans to bring more tournaments to Armenia

The Armenian Basketball Federation stresses that hosting international competitions has become possible thanks to state support and FIBA’s trust.

Narine Shahbazyan noted that the development of team sports is included in Armenia’s 2023–2030 strategy for the development of physical culture and sport. According to her, basketball has become one of the leading sports in the country in recent years and is now one of the fastest-growing team sports after football.

“Hosting such tournaments contributes not only to the development of basketball, but also to the improvement of sports infrastructure. The ministry supports team sports federations, and this cooperation has resulted in Armenia hosting an international basketball tournament for the second time,” Shahbazyan said.

Artur Nazaryan also stated that the ABF intends to continue working on bringing international tournaments to Armenia. After the U16 European Championship, the federation plans to begin discussions about hosting another competition next summer. One of the possible options is bringing a women’s youth division tournament to Yerevan, as the development and popularization of women’s basketball is also a priority.

Armenia U16 squad: players from Armenia, the United States and Russia

Armenia’s U16 squad was formed from players representing local clubs and Armenian-origin basketball players competing abroad.

According to Artur Nazaryan, a series of tryouts was held in Los Angeles during the winter, with around 120 young Armenian basketball players taking part. Three of the most promising players were selected from that group. A separate selection process was also carried out in Russia.

Local players were also closely monitored by the coaching staff. An Armenia U16 team had been formed and had been competing in the country’s U18 championship since January. The coaches watched all of their games and selected players by position.

“The strongest players have been included in the squad. We do not divide players by where they live. If a basketball player has Armenian roots, is an Armenian citizen and deserves to play for the national team, we cannot leave him out,” Nazaryan emphasized.

The current squad includes 14 players. Six of them represent Armenian clubs and sports schools, while the others play in the United States and Russia.

Armenia aims to win Division C for the first time since 2017

The Armenian Basketball Federation is not hiding the team’s main goal at the home tournament — victory. Last year, Armenia’s U16 team finished third in Division C and came close to reaching the final.

Armenia last won the competition in this age category in 2017. The ABF believes the time has come to take another step forward, especially with the advantage of playing at home.

“For us, only victory would be a satisfying result. At the same time, we understand that these are young players taking their first steps in international basketball. We do not want to put unnecessary pressure on them, but we must help them achieve a positive result,” Nazaryan said.

Armenia U16 head coach is Narek Kapushyan

Armenia’s U16 national team will be led at the home European Championship by Narek Kapushyan. He works in Los Angeles with the Armenian AGBU team, which has performed successfully in California school divisions.

The federation considers him a strong candidate for the youth national team. Kapushyan has also been part of Armenia’s senior national team coaching staff for the past two years and has experience working with young basketball players.

Armenia U16 squad for the European Championship

David Zohrabyan — Kilikia
Gagik Tsarukyan — Shengavit
Artur Aslibekyan — CSKA, Russia
Dmitry Hajyan — Pavlovsky Posad, Russia
Ethan Kazanchyan — AGBU, USA
Jivan Doryan — AGBU, USA
Hovhannes Kostikyan — HMOMM
Gevorg Hayrapetyan — Shengavit
Mikhail Petrov — Krasnoyarsk Sports School, Russia
Anthony Sargsyan — Paul George Elite, USA
Alexander Abrahamyan — Mirak
Hovhannes Ordanyan — Patriot
Aram Gevorgyan — HMOMM
Rafael Grigoryan — Mirak