Gisembe memorial kicks off tomorrow

Saturday Men UGB vs APR 1pmIPRC Kigali vs U18 boys 2pmPatriots vs IPRC South 3pm Sunday IPRC South vs UGB 12pmEspoir vs IPRC Kigali 3pmAPR vs Patriots 5pm Women APR vs Ubumwe 10am The annual Gisembe memorial basketball tournament kicks off tomorrow with nine teams-seven in men’s category - and two in the women category featuring in the 5-day tournament that will be played at three venues: College of Science and Technology, Amahoro indoor stadium, and CSK. Champions Espoir, who won last year’s edition, are drawn in Group A alongside U-18 Boys’ team and IPRC-Kigali and will kick off their title defence against IPRC-Kigali on Sunday seeking redemption after losing out on the league title for the first time in four years, to Patriots. League Champions Patriots are in Group B alongside United Generation Basketball (UGB), IPRC-South and APR, while the women category will only have two clubs, APR and Ubumwe. Since last year, Rwanda Basketball Federation, in conjunction with Espoir Basketball Club, organises two Gisembe memorial tournaments; a local and regional event and this time around the local tournament will provide four teams to compete in the regional event slated for June 10-12 at Amahoro indoor stadium. Clubs will play in a round robin format with the top two teams in the men’s category qualifying for the semi-finals to determine who will play the finals whereas the winner in the ladies’ category will be decided from the winner over two legs. According to the organisers, four countries have already confirmed participation in the regional tournament and these, include Uganda, Burundi, DR Congo and Kenya. The annual tournament is held in memory of former Espoir player and coach Emmanuel Ntarugera Gisembe, who was killed during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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Gisembe memorial kicks off tomorrow