Resi Mortgage brings basketball’s Boomers to Sydney

An exciting new Australian-based international basketball tournament has been born today, with Basketball Australia unveiling the inaugural Resi Mortgage 4-nations tournament.

The Australian Boomers will take on world powers China, Lithuania and New Zealand in an international tournament to be played in Perth and Sydney this August. The tournament will become an annual feature of the international basketball calendar, with the event hosted by both Australia and China on a rotational basis.

“A four-year agreement, signed with China this year, will ensure four annual tournaments between Australia, China and two other invited nations,” Basketball Australia Chief Executive Scott Derwin said. “Australia will host the tournament in alternate years, starting this year with matches being played in both Perth and Sydney.”

“We are ecstatic to have Resi Mortgage Corporation on board as the presenting sponsor in Sydney and look forward to a successful relationship with one of Australia’s most awarded home loan companies.”

“Resi Mortgage Corporation welcomes the opportunity to support this inaugural tournament,” Resi Managing Director, Peter James, said today. “The prospect of so many talented international players coming together in one event is a huge windfall for the game, and it's great to be a part of it.”

The 2005 tournament commences on August 9 and 10 at the Challenge Stadium in Perth and concludes at the Sydney Entertainment Centre on August 12 and 14. In what will be a blockbuster weekend of international sport in Sydney, fans will have basketball on Friday night, the Bledisloe Cup on Saturday night, the City to Surf fun run on Sunday morning and basketball on Sunday afternoon.

Fans attending the Resi 4-nations event will have the opportunity to see some of the world’s best international basketballers compete live. Each night, two games will be played, with special entertainment and activities for the whole family surrounding the games.

Boomers head coach, Brian Goorjian is hoping to successfully guide the Boomers to the inaugural title.

“I always expect to see my guys come out and leave everything on the court,” Goorjian said. “We are all ecstatic to be playing in front of a home crowd and will not disappoint the fans who come out to support us. They will see some really exciting Boomers-brand basketball.”

Athens Olympian Matthew Nielsen said he was looking forward to continuing the rivalry with nations from the Asia Pacific region.

“Australian basketball fans will get to see some high-quality international basketball between four nations who competed at the Olympics,” Nielsen said. “This is a great opportunity to build the rivalry between countries in our region and we hope to build the strength of Asia-Oceania teams as well.”

Tournament organisers are hopeful that the event will boast two NBA players in Andrew Bogut (Australia) and Yao Ming (China). While the two players have not confirmed their attendance at the tournament, the event has been scheduled to allow for them both to make the trip to Australia.

“I’d love to go up against Yao in front of a home crowd and it’s sure to be a sight no basketball fan would want to miss,” Nielsen said.

The tournament agreement with China will continue Basketball Australia’s drive to forge strong relationships with Asian basketballing nations.

The Honourable Henry Tsang MLC, Parliamentary Secretary to the Premier on Trade and Investment and Chinese Australian community leader, is excited to have the event in Sydney.

“This is undoubtedly the strongest-ever Chinese basketball team and we are delighted to host this historic series against the Boomers in Sydney's Chinatown precinct,” Tsang said. “Basketball is played by over 200 million people in China and following the phenomenal success of Yao Ming in the NBA, its popularity is only set to increase.”

“This basketball series will serve as a fantastic bridge between Australia and China, and should strengthen our cultural and sporting ties. The Chinese Australian community is very excited about the tournament and for the chance to see China's best against Australia's best.”

“We will see this tournament become a firm fixture between the two nations over the coming years,” Scott Derwin predicted. “We are sure that this initial four-year agreement will only be the beginning of what will be a high-profile and successful annual tournament.”

“We are pleased that we were able to attract New Zealand and Lithuania to the tournament in its inaugural year. Lithuania have been a top-four world-ranked team for the past 12 years and few will forget their memorable clash with the Boomers in the bronze medal game at the Sydney Olympics. Their strength and size will provide for some great on-court action.”

The Perth leg of the tournament is supported by Western Australia’s EventsCorp and the NSW Department of Tourism, Sport and Recreation are providing invaluable support for the Sydney leg.

The Perth Wildcats and Sydney Kings are hosting the tournaments in their home arenas, and tickets go on sale for both venues on June 29 through Ticketmaster 7.

Competition format and schedule

Tuesday, 9 August – Challenge Stadium, Perth

6:00pm - New Zealand vs China
8:00pm - Australia vs Lithuania

Wednesday, 10 August – Challenge Stadium, Perth

6:00pm - New Zealand vs Lithuania
8:00pm - Australia vs China

Friday, 12 August – Sydney Entertainment Centre

6:15pm - China vs Lithuania
8:30pm - Australia vs New Zealand

Sunday, 14 August – Sydney Entertainment Centre

3:00pm - New Zealand vs Lithuania
5.15pm - Australia vs China