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The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) begun yesterday a tour to visit all bidding countries for the 2014 FIBA World Championship for Men.

China, Denmark, France, Italy and Spain are the candidates interested in hosting the 2014 edition of the FIBA World Championship, FIBA’s premier competition. On 5th December 2008 each of the above-mentioned five national federations will have to confirm their bid by formally presenting their candidature files to FIBA in a public presentation ceremony to be held in Geneva, Switzerland.

Already last June candidate countries participated in a workshop where the ‘Bid and Event Manual’ was presented and explained. This manual will help bidding countries prepare their candidature files.

The tour of site visits that has commenced today, six weeks before the December deadline, will take off in the People’s Republic of China. FIBA President, Bob Elphinston, and FIBA Secretary General and IOC Member, Patrick Baumann, will meet tomorrow, Tuesday, with officials of the Chinese Basketball Association and city officials of Beijing.

Next week, Elphinston and Baumann will visit Paris, Madrid and Rome. Copenhagen will be visited at a later date.

These visits will allow candidate countries and officials to review and ask questions concerning the bidding process and the requirements expected by FIBA. At the same time, the top leaders of FIBA will make themselves available to the respective domestic national media representatives in press conferences that will take place in each of the bidding countries.

After the handing over of the candidature files on 5th December, FIBA will appoint an Evaluation Commission to examine all files and to formally visit the countries and review the commitments made.

The complete bidding process will end in May 2009, when the FIBA Central Board will decide the host of the 2014 World Championship for Men.

(Source: FIBA)