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of Educational and Cultural Affairs Diplomacy Bank Shot "The visit of the Iranian Olympic basketball team to the United States reflects our ongoing commitment to build bridges to the Iranian people through citizen exchange."
The State Department’s Office of Sports Initiatives in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the NBA, brought a 25-member delegation of the Iranian National Basketball team to Salt Lake City, Utah for a series of exhibition games. The Olympic bound team spent a little over a week in the U.S. participating in the Rocky Mountain Revue tournament. Assistant Secretary Ameri stated, "We appreciate the NBA's partnership in making this visit a success, and share the view that sports is a wonderful way to promote mutual understanding among the world's youth." The Asian League champions practiced sometimes twice a day in preparation for their upcoming games. The team played a four game tournament against a compilation of six NBA Summer and Developmental League teams. The group's skill level showed a notable improvement throughout its week of programming. The players attributed the progression to the direct training, practicing and playing with the American athletes and coaches. For the last game of the series they played before a sold out crowd of cheering fans. The Iranian team was so moved by the support at the end of the game they threw roses out into the crowd. A member of the delegation stated, "There was a lot for me to observe and learn and it was really nice to see that you were all trying your best to make this experience the most for the delegation. I'm sure this visit will have a very impressive impact on our basketball." While in Salt Lake City the group met with Assistant Secretary Goli Ameri and the NBA Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver. The members of the delegation expressed gratitude to the U.S. Government representative and the NBA for the warm reception they received. The group worked and trained extremely hard, but also had some free time. The team attended the Days of 47 Rodeo show at the Energy Solutions Arena. This was a quintessential American experience for the group. Another widely talked about highlight of their program was the children’s clinic held at The Factory, the Utah Flash’s practice facility. During the clinic, the team assisted with close to 100 youth performing basketball drills. "The people we came to know, the new experiences; we all now have a very good impression of the U.S"
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