Rwanda Basketball federation, Ferwaba, has confirmed a total 14 basketball clubs will grace this year’s local edition of the memorial tournament in honor of the basketball fraternity members who lost their lives during the horrific 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. The one-week long tourney kicks-off this Friday and run through May 19 in Kigali. The annual tournament has attracted nine teams in men’s and five in women’s category. The male category includes eight league sides and the national Under-18 National Team while the women’s showpiece will be contested by four league clubs and the U18 youth team. Formerly called Gisembe memorial tournament, the competition was first staged in 1996 by Espoir basketball club in memory of former Espoir player and Coach Emmanuel ‘Gisembe’ Ntarugera, who was killed during the Genocide. However, since 2015, FERWABA in conjunction with Espoir Basketball Club, decided to stage two separate tournaments; a local and regional segment of the tournament. Basketball is one of the sports that was heavily affected by the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, having lost over 30 of its athletes, coaches and administrators during the tragedy. The regional edition will be held shortly after the conclusion of the local edition. Full 14-team list Men Group A: Rwanda Energy Group (REG), IPRC- Kigali, APR and the National U18 boys team Group B: Holders Espoir, newly crowned league champions Patriots, IPRC-South, United Generation Basketball Club (UGB) and Rusizi Women’s category: APR, The hoops, Ubumwe, IPRC-South and the National U18 girls team editorial@newtimes.co.rw
