Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Indonesian Basketball Association (Perbasi) opened the opportunity for 100 young basketball players in the age bracket of 14 to 18 years to practice at basketball schools in Lithuania.

Perbasi opens the opportunity in an effort to develop basketball talent in the country.

Perbasi will conduct a talent search for young people in various regions across Indonesia, namely direct monitoring of players by national coaches.

“Scouting will be held from February 1 to 29. We are seeking 100 players aged from 14 to 18 years and then brought together to be selected directly, with the plan being in Jakarta," Secretary General of central management Perbasi Nirmala Dewi stated in Jakarta on Thursday.

This national selection was planned to be carried out in early March. The quality of these young players will be directly assessed by the coach recommended by the Lithuanian Basketball federation.

“Chosen in March because Lithuania is focused on completing the EuroBasket qualifying round in February 2024. After that, the coach from Lithuania will select 100 Indonesian young players," Dewi remarked.

General chairman of the Perbasi central management Danny Kosasih explained that from the results of the talent selection of 100 young basketball players, the number will be narrowed down to only 15 names. Those selected are athletes who meet the criteria.

“The main requirement is posture. Must be tall. This is in accordance with the results of discussions with the Lithuanian Basketball federation," Kosasih stated.

A total of 15 players from this selection were then sent to Lithuania to receive training directly from the Lithuanian coach. They are expected to return from Lithuania to become a team that can be a mainstay of Indonesia's future.

“These players will be in Lithuania for six months,” Kosasih explained.

Kosasih highlighted that the criteria of the maximum age of 18 years is sought for Perbasi so as to ensure it has a sufficient pool of players for this age category. It is expected that in future, Perbasi can be in a strong position to face various international events.

“Soon, we will face SEABA U-18. If this team qualifies, it will continue to fight in the Asian Cup," Kosasih stated.

Moreover, this 18-year age limit policy aims to ensure success of the regeneration program in the Indonesian national team.

"We hope that this step would maintain the performance of the national team in every event," Kosasih remarked.

This program is part of the implementation of cooperation between PP Perbasi and the Lithuanian Basketball Federation (LTU Basketball). The signing of this MoU was held in Jakarta on October 30, 2023.

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Translator: Aditya R, Yuni Arisandy
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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