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Cermonial Launch of 20th International Rajko Žižić International Mini Basketball Festival supported by NIS

The 20th Anniversary International Rajko Žižić International Mini Basketball Festival, the venue that traditionally brings together our future basketball stars, was officially opened today in Hall 3 of the Belgrade Expo.

25.01.2020

The festival is being held from January 23 to 26, 2020, organized by the Association Mini Basket Serbia, organised by the Basketball Federation of Serbia, under the general sponsorship of NIS.

The opening ceremony was attended by Predrag Danilovic, president of the Basketball Federation of Serbia and Bozidar Maljkovic, president of the Olympic Committee of Serbia, as well as other, many guests and loyal fans, who together celebrated this significant anniversary – 20 years of existence and memory of our great basketball player.

Bozidar Maljkovic, President of the Olympic Committee of Serbia, thanked all those who have made the effort and for which this event has existed for 20 years and emphasized that all participants of the festival are winners, as well as that they are the best part of Serbia, and Predrag Danilovic, President of the Basketball Federation of Serbia, wished the youngest athletes to have fun, play and socialize.

More than 250 teams and more than 2500 children from Serbia and the region will play over 300 games in four days of the tournament, on five pitches, on baskets 2.60 m high and 2.75 m high, with balls number “4” and “5”, as and on two artificial turf fields. In a great atmosphere of socializing, cheering and new acquaintances, during the festive opening of the festival, the cups were handed to each team and medals were distributed to all participants of the event, which each awarded for team spirit and fair play.

A note of gratitude from the Mini Basket Serbia Association was also received by NIS, for its outstanding contribution to the development of the mini basketball movement and the development of a positive attitude of the youngest towards sports and living values, which are the basis of a successful basketball future in Serbia.

„I consider mini basketball to be the source of basketball’s survival in Serbia, as it is a basketball that is adapted to the youngest age categories. The festival celebrated its 20th anniversary with a 20th edition, and this time a record was reached in the number of participating teams. All competitors are winners, which is our motto, and why everyone is awarded medals, goblets and thank you notes. NIS has been our “driver” for the past 10 years, which promotes and massages our existence, and in the true sense of the word is “the future at work,” as far as basketball is concerned, “said Rade Georgievski, President of the Mini Basket Serbia Association.

The young basketball players also had the opportunity to enjoy the previous day with the basketball team of the Partizan NIS cadet team, who participated in a demonstration training, with Luka Tarlac as a special guest, as a member of both the junior and senior teams of the BC ” Partizan NIS ”and Nikola Radovanovic, as the club’s most talented player.

During the festival, a coaching seminar entitled “From Minibasket to Basketball” was organized, as well as lectures for the age categories of working with the youngest. In addition, the Red Cross of Serbia and the UNITAS organization, which deals with the fight against trafficking in human beings and children, hold workshops during the festival, which, in addition to its competition, gives it an educational character.

For nine years in a row, NIS, in cooperation with the Basketball Federation of Serbia, has been supporting the organization of the Mini Basket Serbia project and hosting mini basketball tournaments throughout our country. In line with the slogan “Future at Work”, NIS is constantly investing in the development of sports and young talents, promoting a sporting spirit and a healthy lifestyle. NIS is a multi-year partner of both the Basketball Federation of Serbia and the Partizan NIS Basketball Club.