Hosting this year’s Eurobasket is an “investment in Cypriot sport”, President Nikos Christodoulides said,

Speaking to Greek sports website Sport24, he spoke of his love for basketball and the importance of the sport for his family, with Cyprus set to act as joint hosts of Europe’s premier basketball tournament alongside Finland, Poland, and Latvia in August and September.

“It is an investment in sports, in our infrastructure, which is very important and beyond all the money we have given to upgrade the arena. We want to help the Cyprus basketball federation. We see it as an investment in our children,” he said.

He added that one of his daughters is “following in my footsteps” and has begun playing basketball.

“She has been playing basketball for six years now and I see that it has helped her both in her character and in facing many challenges that a child has to face today at the age of 15,” he said.

Looking ahead to the tournament, he said, “no matter who [Cyprus] plays against, it will definitely be a unique experience.

“I would like to see a game between Cyprus and Greece and if we have such an opportunity, I will definitely invite the Greek Prime Minister [Kyriakos Mitsotakis] and we can watch the game together. I am sure it will be a very interesting match.”

The games in Cyprus will be played at Limassol’s Spyros Kyprianou Athletic Centre, while the Finnish city of Tampere, Latvia’s capital Riga, and the southern Polish city of Katowice will also host games.

A total of 24 countries will compete at this year’s Eurobasket, with 11 including the four hosts having already qualified.

Aside from the four hosts, the qualified nations are Israel, Italy, Lithuania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, and Turkey. The draw will take place on March 27.