Rana : We are looking forward to the podium in the Asian Basketball Championship.

Amman - Jordan Basketball Federation President Ahmed Al-Hanandeh affirmed that the new Canadian coach of the men's national team and the Federation's General Manager of Operations, Roy Rana, has a distinguished track record in development, reviewing his successful experiences in Egypt and Japan, in addition to his work in his home country, Canada.

This came during a press conference held by the Basketball Federation to introduce Canadian Rana, in the presence of a number of national team players. The conference was held at Prince Hamzah Hall in Al Hussein Youth City yesterday.

Al-Hanandeh praised the new coach, noting that he will begin his duties by developing Jordanian basketball in general, alongside his role with the men's national team. He noted that the federation is proceeding according to a clear strategy to build on the past achievements of Jordanian basketball.

Al-Hanandeh explained that Jordanian basketball has the capabilities, including stadiums, clubs, coaches, and other elements, to continue progressing and repeat the achievements of national teams reaching the World Cup, and for local clubs to achieve good results in international tournaments.

Al-Hanandeh added: "We opted for an unconventional coach. We have a strategy and plans that align with his coaching ideas, and we hope that he will provide a qualitative addition to the game that has achieved numerous accomplishments, most notably the youth team's recent qualification for the World Cup at the end of this month."

For his part, Rana expressed his happiness at taking on a new task in his coaching career, stressing his admiration for Jordanian basketball and the quality of the players, through his work with different national teams and facing Jordan in various competitions.
Rana explained that he knows a lot about local basketball through following and monitoring it for many years, explaining that his goal is to develop the game by working to increase the player base and paying attention to the women's sector in all its categories.
He added: "There is no single player who has a basic position in the national team's roster. A player who has the ability to represent the team will play regardless of his age. We will participate in the Asian Cup to return with a medal, and our goal is not just to participate."
Rana confirmed that he followed the national team's training and preparations for the Asian Finals, noting that the federation has many options regarding professional players, and they will not be limited to players who have represented the team in the past.

The national team is participating in the Asian Cup, scheduled to be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, from August 5 to 17, where it was placed in Group C alongside China, the record holder for the number of titles with 16 titles, Saudi Arabia, the host, and the Indian national team.
The teams will play each other in a single round of the group stage, with the top teams in each group qualifying directly for the quarter-finals, while the second and third-placed teams in each group will play a qualifying round for the quarter-finals.

The final stage of the competition continues from the quarter-finals onwards, with a knockout system in place.

The national team has participated in the Asian Cup on 11 previous occasions, the most notable of which was in China in 2011, where it achieved second place after losing the final match to the host country with a score of 69-70