SAYED Hashim Habib, Nooh Qaedi, Hani Shams and Hassan Al Mosawi have all qualified for the Bahrain Final of the Red Bull King of the Rock one-on-one basketball championship.
The quartet were part of the second batch of players who made it through to Friday’s finale after excelling in the second qualifying event held at Al Ahli Club in Mahooz late Sunday night.
Habib, Qaedi, Shams and Al Mosawi now join Mahmood Aziz, Mahmood Khalil, Socorro Dennis and Caryn Moore in the Bahrain final, where they will be among 16 of the kingdom’s best players who will be battling it out for the number one spot.
The winning player who will emerge from Bahrain will win a golden ticket to compete at the World Finals in Alcatraz, San Francisco, in the US this September.
Only four more slots for Friday’s final will be filled today when the qualifiers conclude with its fourth and final stop at Hidd Club.
Last night, scores of players turned out at the Muharraq Club qualifying competition.
Tonight’s action at Hidd Club will be held from 10pm to 12midnight. Those interested in competing may register at the venue itself from 8pm onwards. Slots are limited.
There is no entry fee and the public is welcome to watch the games.
Batelco is sponsoring the competition locally, with the support of the Bahrain Basketball Association.
Those who would like to get the latest updates on Bahrain’s King of the Rock competition, follow @redbullbahrain on Twitter and visit redbullmea.com for all the pictures and videos from the event.
In 2010, Red Bull King of The Rock made history by being the first official sporting event to be held inside one of the world’s most notorious locations: Alcatraz Prison in San Francisco Bay.
Known as “The Rock”, Alcatraz locked down the most dangerous men in America’s penal history from Al Capone to Bumpy Johnson. For 29 years, more than 15,000 convicts tried the impossible, to escape its walls.
After being shut down, Alcatraz turned into a tourist destination and inspired several movie productions.
In 2011, Red Bull King of The Rock turned global by sending some of the best basketball players from around the world to play in Alcatraz’s yard.
That year and in the 2012 edition, “Baby Shaq” from Washington, DC, dominated the World Finals where he beat Czech player Lukas Kraus for the title.