Head coach John Dore and his Concordia Stingers men’s basketball team will represent Canada at the second annual Friendship Games basketball tournament at Tel-Aviv University in Israel June 1-8.
Approximately 30 university teams from 17 countries including Russia, China, Serbia, Jordan, Ireland, Greece, Turkey, Palestine, Ukraine, Slovenia and Israel will compete in the round-robin tournament with each team playing five games.
“I think it’s exciting, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said third-year guard Andre Johnny. “We’re not just going to play basketball, we’re going to learn about other people’s lives and culture. I expect it will be a life-changing experience.”
In addition to the tournament, the Friendship Games give student-athletes of different ethnic and religious backgrounds the opportunity to come together in friendship by touring Jerusalem, the Dead Sea, Nazareth, Sea of Galilee, Tiberias and Tel-Aviv-Jaffa.
The program was conceived in 2006 by Atlanta Hawks co-owner Ed Peskowitz after meeting with Arie Rosenzweig, athletic director of Tel Aviv University, and Illan Kowalski, athletic director at the Interdisciplinary Centre of Herzliya. The goal was to use basketball to unify countries on a grass-roots, person-to-person level.
The Stingers will arrive in Israel one week in advance, using the extra time to tour and to play in another tournament – the International Games – in Be’er Sheva May 28-31.
