Beijing, July 05 (QNA) - Qatar's men's and women's U21 3x3 national teams will begin their campaigns Monday in Stop 1 of the FIBA 3x3 U21 Nations League 2026 - Asia-1, which will be held in Tangshan, China, from July 6-8, 2026.

Qatar's men's U21 team will compete in Group B of the continental tournament and will open their campaign against host China.

The men's competition features five teams, with Group A comprising Mongolia, Kazakhstan and Russia, while Group B consisting of Qatar and China.

Qatar enter the tournament ranked third among the participating teams, behind top-ranked Mongolia and second-ranked China, while Kazakhstan are seeded fourth and Russia fifth.

Meanwhile, Qatar's women's U21 team will begin their campaign tomorrow with two Group A games, facing Russia before taking on China.

The women's competition features the same five teams, with China entering as the top seed, followed by Mongolia and Kazakhstan. Qatar are ranked fourth and Russia fifth.

The participation of Qatar's two national teams forms part of the Qatar Basketball Federation's strategy to mobilize a generation capable of competing regionally and globally by gaining exposure to a wide swath of Asian basketball schools and internalizing further expertise in one of the continent's premier 3x3 basketball contests.

The tournament earns magnitude as one of the qualifying stops for the FIBA 3x3 U21 World Cup 2026, slated to be held in Wuhan, China, from September 15 to 19.

Results from the various stops will play a crucial role in determining the qualified teams, while also contributing to an improved world ranking and paving the way for  participation in higher-tier FIBA competitions in the future. (QNA)