The UK Basketball Hub

2014, sees the inaugural Invictus Games seeing servicemen compete in a number of sports including wheelchair basketball at the Copper Box Arena. In 16 days time, International sport returns to the site of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games in a tournament championed by Prince Harry. Formerly in the Royal Navy, AJ Pingram has an interesting story of how he got involved in the games, despite having picked up a basketball to participate just once before. Pingram grew up with the Royal Navy in his blood having had servicemen in his family and explains the story behind his participation in the games. He said: "I haven't done any sport for years, until I went to a Cheshire Phoenix wheelchair basketball session, when I applied for tickets for the games, they asked me if I was ex-forces, I said yes, they asked if I was disabled, I said yes, they asked if I played disability sport and I said wheelchair basketball. "Next thing I know I get an offer inviting me to the ...

The 2012 Olympics' Basketball stadium's outer shell is being sold by Barr Construction after they failed to find a use for the temporary building. The arena is one of the biggest ever temporary buildings for any games and the 12,000 seater stadium does not come with the shell. There are rumours that it could be transported to Rio for the 2016 Olympic games and used potentially for different sports. Barclay Chalmers the managing director of Barr Construction said: 'The basketball arena was one of the showpiece structures for the games, but it was clear there would be no legacy use for a permanent basketball venue, hence the use of the temporary building'. He continued: 'It could be used to hold conferences or events, perhaps like The O2 in Greenwich'. Formal bids for the frame are due on the 30th April this year.