Israel will be one of four countries to host the European basketball championship in 2017, the biggest tournament Israel has ever hosted The other three countries sharing hosting honors are Finland, Romania and Turkey, with the latter hosting the Eurobasket's final round at two venues in Istanbul. Finland, which last hosted Eurobasket in 1967, will host one group in Helsinki, while Israel and Romania will host group games in Tel Aviv and Cluj, respectively. The is the second championship to be hosted by four countries, with three of the four hosting the tournament's preliminary rounds. This past year, the host countries were Croatia, France, Germany and Latvia. The sport's international governing body, FIBA, says it opted to follow the same path for the 2017 edition due to its "unprecedented success." The 2017 host countries were named in Munich on Saturday, in the presence of Israel Basketball Association President Amiram Halevy, Israeli national basketball team General Manager Pini Gershon and IBA director general Yaakov Ben Shushan. Prior to naming Israel as a host, FIBA representatives came to Israel to view local stadiums and to attend a presentation about basketball in Israel. The games will take place at the Menora Mivtachim Arena in the Yad Eliyahu neighborhood of Tel Aviv from Aug. 31 to Sept. 5, 2017. The teams will practice at the municipal stadium in northern Tel Aviv. Halevy said of the decision: "We waited for this for a long time and we worked very hard to get here. We plan to host an exemplary championship, so that they will not forget it in Europe and they will come back many more times. "Being a host carries with it a lot of significance, and I hope that everyone works together to make it a success." The next generation As a host country, Israel's national team will automatically play in the championship, without having to participate in earlier rounds. It will be the 13th year in a row that Israel plays in the Eurobasket championship. Being exempt from qualifying games will allow Israel's team to spend the summer practicing Israeli national team player Lior Eliyahu will be taking the summer off leading up to the championship, which he can now do without risking the team suffering in early games. The team's coach, Erez Edelstein, welcomed the news from FIBA, saying: "It's an important day for basketball, and I am happy to be a part of history. The [IBA] members who worked behind the scenes for this accomplishment, to bring the European championship to Israel, deserve to be congratulated." He continued: "The veteran players, who have been giving their all to the team since they were young, will be able to rest for the summer after a long season and to come to the championship refreshed and re-energized. "This will also allow the younger generation of players to gain experience without the pressure of competing in the qualifying rounds of the European championship. At the end of the day, the goal is to be as prepared as possible for summer 2017." Israeli national team star Omri Caspi, who also plays in the NBA, said: "This is very exciting, it's a real dream to play in the Eurobasket in front of our fans. Congratulations to everyone involved for the great honor. I can't wait for summer 2017." Team member Gal Mekel, who played briefly in the NBA, said: "This is a big landmark for the sport and for Israeli basketball. We want to continue with the great experience we had two summers ago in the preliminaries, which continued into the championships this past summer and, God willing, will continue with the Eurobasket in our country [in 2017]. This will be a dream come true for all the players and fans of the Israeli national team." Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai also welcomed the news, saying: "The decision to hold the tournament in Tel Aviv is very important for Israel in an age of boycotts. We will host everyone and give them the very best experience."
