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SIBF representatives at the Children of the World 2010 festival in Istanbul, Turkey are leaving with very fond memories of the event.  Lifhaus speaking with the children, Ray and Ruthie along with their coach Lysa Wini has heard nothing but praises from the participants.

Ms Wini remarked, "The chance to watch basketball at the international stage has been a dream come true for me.  We were able to watch 6 games from the FIBA World Championships currently underway in Turkey and it was a great experience.  We screamed, we jumped and supported our teams."  When queried on which team left an impression, Ms Wini said Team USA not only displayed high levels of basketball skills "they also entertained the fans.  People traveled from all over the world to watch the championship."

Ruthie Sade said, "I made a lot of friends.  Language was difficult but we managed with sign language and we had lots of fun doing that.  I was pleased that SIBF gave me the chance to attend this festival and see how children from other parts of the world train and play basketball."

Ray Ngatulu, the more sociable of the two, was left to his whims "he really fit in quickly" said Ms Wini. 

Ms Wini explained that more than 150 countries were represented at the festival which is a cultural exchange programme organized by the Turkish basketball federation to commemorate its hosting of the FIBA World Championships.  "We were divided into 2 conferences, blue and red, with 2 divisions per conference.  Each division had 5 teams each.  So Solomon Islands was in the red conference along with African and Asian countries.  Only one other country was an english speaking country so you can imagine how much fun we all had in trying to communicate."

Lifhaus News Desk understands that the underlying reason of organizing the Children of the World festival is to ensure that other countries and people of the world experience the FIBA Basketball World Championships.  "Only 24 of the strongest basketball countries of the world ever get to play in the championships.  Allowing other countries an opportunity to also participate has been the hallmark of Children of the World festival's success.  Children and their coaches get to experience the FIBA Basketball World Championships with the 24 countries competing in the competiton" explained the president of the organizing committee.

The Solomon Islands delegation is leaving Turkey and will have a 24 hour stop over in Singapore before flying out to Port Moresby and finally to Honiara.