The 2010 FIBA World Basketball Championship will start with a vivacious opening ceremony, featuring performances by distinguished singers, Cirque De Soleil, and Children of the World. Turkey has spent 24 million euros preparing for the ceremony.
The event, which will take place in the Sinan Erdem Dome in Istanbul’s Ataköy district on Aug. 27, will be spectacular, given that a large budget was not allocated to the opening ceremonies hosted in Toronto, Indianapolis and Japan. Past World Basketball Championship opening ceremonies were kept simple, said Turgay Demirel, head of the Turkish Basketball Federation.
The ceremony will commence at 9:30 p.m. and will be broadcast live in HD to 172 countries via 18 cameras. “Our responsibilities are to carry out this event well and become the champion by winning the tournament,” said Demirel, recalling that Turkey came in sixth place and ninth place in previous world basketball championships.
The 16th World Basketball Championship, which brings the tournament back to Europe after a 12-year absence, will host 24 “dream teams” from Aug. 28 to Sept. 12 and will be played in four different cities: Izmir, Istanbul, Ankara and Kayseri, said Ali Özsoy, the general secretary of the Turkish Basketball Federation.
“Actually the championship was to be played in five cities [including Antalya], instead of four,” Demirel told the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review. “As 24 teams are participating in the tournament, we needed four cities for six teams each, and the final was to be played in the fifth city. But, we changed it to four cities and five sports halls after seeing that the construction of the sport complex in Antalya ran the risk of not being totally completed in time [for the championship]. Both group matches and the final will be played in Istanbul,” said Demirel.
Noting that 76 percent of tickets have already been sold, Özsoy said that tickets in Istanbul and Ankara have sold out, but sales continue in İzmir and Ankara. “We’re expecting 5 million euros from ticket sales,” said Özsoy, pointing out that the earnings gained from sponsorships will be around 12 million to 13 million euros.
“So far, 150 countries have checked in, which is a record attendance,” said Özsoy. He indicated that in previous championships people from only 105 countries had attended. “Thanks to a large international conference that will be held in Istanbul between Sept. 4 and Sept. 6, the size of the international audience increased,” said Özsoy. He anticipates that 15 percent of the spectators will be foreign.
As part of the championship, a new project entitled “Children of the World” will take place, with the participation of 13-year-old and 14-year-old students and their coaches, from 110 countries, said Özsoy. “They will participate in camps, compete with each other and develop friendships,” said Özsoy. The project was established by the Turkish Basketball Federation and this year’s FIBA Championship is the first time it will be run. Özsoy also noted that 300 children from the project will sing the Basketball Championship song with world flags at the opening ceremony.
A special performance by Cirque Du Soleil, a prominent group from Montreal, will also leave its mark on the opening ceremony, said Michel Laprise, an Cirque Du Soleil organizer. Cirque Du Soleil will concentrate on the theme of Istanbul in a show they have created especially for FIBA, said Laprise, who noted that they have been rigorously preparing for a week. “We have 20 other shows continuing in different locations around the world, but this one will be unique for FIBA,” said Laprise.
Other singers and groups who will perform at the opening ceremony are Anadolu Ateşi, Fatih Erkoç, Müslüm Gürses, and Sezen Aksu, who will perform duets with famous Greek singer Harris Alexiu and Italian tenor Alessandro Safina.
