Puerto Rican banker Carrión was formerly the chairman of the IOC's Finance Commission and a prominent member of its Marketing Commission and was a key figure in driving up income received from broadcasting rights for the IOC in recent years.

He ran for election as IOC President last year but finished second to Germany's Thomas Bach, who was elected as Jacque Rogge's replacement at the IOC Session in Buenos Aires last September.

Following the election, Carrión stepped back from his various roles within the organisation but remains an IOC member.

At the first meeting of the FIBA Central Board in Madrid on Saturday (September 13) under the direction of newly elected President Horacio Muratore, five more individuals were appointed.

They include Presidents of the Russian and Philippines Basketball Federations, Yulia Anikeeva and Manuel V Pangilinan respectively, along with Erick Thohir, who is the President of the Southeast Asian Basketball Association.

American Mark Tatum, who is deputy commissioner and chief operating officer of the National Basketball Association (NBA), was appointed as its representative, while President of the National Olympic Committee of Serbia, Vlade Divac, will act as the players' representative.

Divac, who was only recently released from hospital after undergoing emergency stomach surgery last month, played in the NBA with the Charlotte Hornets, Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings from 1989 to 2005.

He is one of only six players in NBA history to record 13,000 points, 9,000 rebounds, 3,000 assists and 1,500 blocked shots, along with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Tim Duncan, Shaquille O'Neal, Kevin Garnett and Hakeem Olajuwon.

Divac was also the first player born and trained outside the United States to play in more than 1,000 games in the NBA, leading to him being inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2010.

President of the National Olympic Committee of Serbia and former NBA star Vlade Divac has been elected as the players' representative on the FIBA Central Board ©Getty Images



The six new appointments will join the rest of the Central Board, which was elected at FIBA's World Congress in the Spanish capital on August 28, prior to the start of the Basketball World Cup.

Argentine Muratore replaced Yvan Mainini of France as President and will be joined by new treasurer, German Basketball Federation President Ingo Weiss, as well as Swiss Patrick Baumann who is secretary general.

Also elected at the Congress were Anibal Manave of Mozambique and Benin's Clotaire Celestine Adjanohoun representing Africa, while Canadian Michelle O'Keefe, Paraguay's Marcelo Bedoya and Jim Tooley of the United States will represent the Americas.

China's Tian Xiao is the Asian representative with Europe's Jose Luis-Saez from Spain, Belgian Cyriel Coomans, Lena Wallin-Kantzy of Sweden and Frenchman Jean-Pierre Siutat also elected.

Australian Scott Derwin and Deborah K Shoniber of the Marshall Islands will represent Oceania.

They will be joined by the Presidents of FIBA's five continental zones Hamane Niang - Africa; Usie Richards - Americas; Sheikh Saud Bin Ali Al-Thani - Asia; Turgay Demirel - Europe and Burton Shipley - Oceania.

In addition, Mainini was elected as President of the International Basketball Federation while the make-up of its various Commissions was also decided.

The FIBA Central Board met for the first time in Madrid on Sunday where it appointed six additional members ©FIBA



The new Board got down to business straight away and has decided to implement a two-year testing phase regarding the wearing of headgear which has been the subject of controversy in recent years.

Currently, players are banned from wearing headgear for religious reasons, with FIBA claiming the measure is in place for "safety on the basketball court and uniformity of equipment within a team".

However, FIBA has announced a relaxing of the rules allowing National Federations to apply for exemptions during domestic competition after which they will submit follow-up reports twice a year to monitor the use of such exceptions.

Players will also be allowed to play in FIBA endorsed 3x3 competitions - both nationally and internationally - wearing headgear without restrictions, unless the latter presents a direct threat to their safety or that of other players on the court.

A first report will be provided to the Central Board in 2015, which will then determine whether tests at the lowest official international level shall be allowed as of next summer.

A full review will be carried out in 2016 to take a decision on whether permanent changes to the official basketball rules shall be made and implemented after the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


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