British Basketball performance chairman Roger Moreland revealed he is seeking an urgent meeting with Grant in order to find a long-term solution to the governing body's funding issue, after it lost all UK Sport investment in a decision in February.

Basketball was one of seven Olympic and Paralympic sports to have its UK Sport funding withdrawn, leading to many criticisms over the "no compromise" philosophy instilled by UK Sport and its alleged unfairness on team-based sport.

"The simple fact now is that we have used reserves to fund this campaign and now we need funds to field a team at next year's EuroBasket," said Moreland.

"Unless we find a solution to the funding crisis, a tragic situation will occur because this hard-working and talented team could have their chance of representing this country at Rio 2016 snatched from them through no fault of their own.

"The biggest barrier to overcome is not the challenge on the court from basketball superpowers - we can deal with that; it is the system of funding and systematic targets currently in place which penalises our players.

"Explain this to someone from abroad and they look at you in amazement.

"The irony is that we can do something about this, if we want to.

"What sort of message does this send to the thousands of girls who play basketball and dream of representing their country on the world stage?

"This is certainly not the legacy I or many others envisaged from the London 2012 Games.

"This is particularly so for a team sport which is second in popularity to only football in terms of the 14-25 age group and the fourth-most popular team sport for women only.

"I will be writing to Helen Grant to seek an urgent meeting with her.

"We have to find a solution to the funding issue facing team sports like basketball at elite level.

"For us, it has become even more pressing now following the fantastic achievements of our women in qualifying for the European Championship Finals.

"In the circumstances, it is simply remarkable."

British Basketball had its funding withdrawn in February during UK Sport's Annual Investment Review ©Getty Images



Moreland goes on to credit the progress of basketball within Britain since London 2012, explaining that the investment given to the sport before the Games has led to the successful implementation of development programmes that are beginning to bear fruit.

He added: "What other country would cut a national sports team adrift just when they have qualified for a major Championships for the third time in a row and are still on track to qualify for Rio?"

"Our situation surely points to a fundamental problem in elite team sports funding and the need to find an appropriate solution in the funding system.

"Perhaps we need to think about whether the targets are correct for sports like basketball that are on the up.

He added: "I am immensely proud of this group's achievements and I know many, many people out there are too."

"Other nations simply do not understand the fact that a nation that invests so much in sport can seemingly say it's just too hard and you can't win a medal so we're going to cast adrift national teams.

"A solution lies in the hands of the Sports Minister and that is why I look forward to discussing this with her as a matter of urgency."

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