From backyards to Olympics
3×3 basketball has its roots in the gritty street courts of 1980s America — born not in academies but in neighbourhoods, parks, and high school gyms. But it took a global leap only in the last 15 years.
FIBA, the sport’s world body, began standardising the format in the late 2000s, with test events at the 2007 Asian Indoor Games and trials in Indonesia and the Dominican Republic in 2008.
The sport’s official debut came in 2009 at the Asian Youth Games in Singapore.
From there, it has been a dream run. In 2010, the format was premiered at the Youth Olympics in Singapore, then the first FIBA 3×3 World Cup in Athens (2012) happened. It was included in the European Games (2015), made Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020 (delayed due to the pandemic and held in 2021) and featured in the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
“From pickup games to the podium — that’s the story of 3×3,” says K O Oommen, a key figure in Kerala’s basketball scene.
