Pibaq officials led by its president, Pat Carido fully support the HH Heir Apparent Cup 2013.

By Joey Aguilar/Staff Reporter



Hundreds of expatriates from different organisations in Qatar are expected to watch the HH Heir Apparent Cup 2013 finals at the Al Gharafa Indoor Hall today.
Responding to the invitation from HE Sheikh Saoud bin Adbulrahman al-Thani, president of the Qatar Basketball Association (QBF), the Pinoy Basketball Qatar (Pibaq) has expressed its full support for the annual competition.
Pibaq president Pat Carido told Gulf Times that many overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) will watch the event since many of them are basketball enthusiasts and the sporting event is one most prestigious tournament in Qatar.
“Pibaq officials will be there to watch the games and I am sure that many of our players, friends and kababayans will be there too,” he said.
Carido disclosed that most of the table officials in the said tournament are experienced Filipino basketball officials like Bayani Tolentino Vitor. He serves as the supervisor of table statisticians of QBF and the deputy commissioner of Pibaq.
“Statisticians play a very important role in a basketball league. They are the ones who post live statistics during the game,” he stressed.
Carido is hoping that QBF will allow Filipino teams to play in the HH Heir Apparent Cup in the future.
Meanwhile, Al Rayyan vs El Jaish teams will battle it out in the finals.
In a press statement, Al Rayyan’s coach Brian Rowsom said they will have a tough time dealing with their opponent. “El Jaish has not lost a game in the Preliminaries and up until the Best-of-5 semis”.
On the other hand, El Jaish team manager Mohamed al-Obaidli said: “We are ready not only for Rayyan. It could be any other team and we are prepared to do battle whether it’s Arabi, Sadd, Gharafa, Rayyan.”
Culture attaché Richard Billedo and some leaders of Filipino organisations in Qatar are expected to grace the tournament.
Carido also said they are supporting another basketball tournament, the Emir Cup 2013 which will be held on April 18 and 19.