ITALDESIGN

18.01.2006 Recently redesigned by legendary Italian stylist Giorgetto Giugiaro, the Molten GL7 has been chosen as the official ball of the 2006 FIBA Basketball World Championship which will be held in Japan this summer

The FIBA World Championships' 2006 Organising Committee has announced that they are going to use Molten's flagship basketball model GL7 as their official ball. GL7 is an innovative, highly visible ball with a twelve-panel, two-tone coloured design, which makes the game much more exciting. With the new technology, GL7 resolved conflicting issues of rebound speed and grip performance. With the change in the FIBA regulations regarding basketballs (i.e. The ball shall have eight elliptically shaped panels with a brown or orange colour.) the ball was recently redesigned by Giorgetto Giugiaro, one of Italy's greatest car designers, and well known in the last year for styling the new Alfa Brera and Fiat Grande Punto.

Molten Corporation has been a long time partner of FIBA (International Basketball Federation) and as a FIBA official sponsor for more than 20 years, providing balls exclusively for all the FIBA official tournaments including the continental qualifications and the FIBA World Championships since the 9th edition in 1982. Molten balls are used at basketball federations, leagues, etc. worldwide and also domestically in the JBL and WJBL as the official game ball.

The FIBA World Championship is the most prestigious basketball event. It decides the champion from 212 nations and regions worldwide that belong to FIBA, the International Basketball Federation. Held in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1950 for the first time, the Championship is held every four years between Olympic Games, creating excitement and intense and motivating scenes. From 2006, the number of participating teams will be increased to 24, from 16. (The host nation, the 2004 Olympic Champions, and nations/regions that won the preliminary matches of Asia, Africa, America, Europe and Oceania zones will all qualify for the Championship.) This decision was made to address the internationally enhanced level of basketball and the circumstances that basketball is the most popular indoor team sport in the world. The FIBA World Championship will surely take on a growing importance and become the world's most attractive sporting event.

Molten GL7

Recently redesigned by legendary Italian stylist Giorgetto Giugiaro, the Molten GL7 has been chosen as the official ball of the 2006 FIBA Basketball World Championship which will be held in Japan this summer


The FIBA World Championship 2006 in Japan will be the first World Championship in Asia since it was held in Manila, Philippines 28 years ago, and of course the first in Japan. The world's top players will assemble in Japan to compete with each other for pride, honour and the title "World Champion."
 

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Report & Photo: FIBA / © 2006 Interfuture Media/Italiaspeed