Azernews.Az

By Laman Ismayilova

“Red Bull King of the Rock 2016” streetball event took place in Baku on July 30, Trend Life reported.

The event was organized with the support of the Seaside Boulevard Department, Water Sports Palace, GoSport and “The Club Port Baku”.

Amil Gamzaev once again became the national winner of the event. He will compete at the world final to be held in Belgrade.

Red Bull King of the Rock is the world's most prestigious one-on-one street basketball tournament sponsored by Red Bull. It occurred annually at “The Yard” of Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay from 2010 to 2013.

Azerbaijan attended the tournament in 2013. Amil Gamzaev competed with 64 world's strongest streetball players. In 2014 the tournament was held in Taiwan, where Azerbaijan was represented by Zaur Pashayev.

Initially, the tournament was open solely to the top 64 players from the West Coast of the United States. In 2013, however, qualifiers for the event were held in 20 U.S. cities, as well as in 23 other countries, to find the top 64 players worldwide.

The tournament follows a straightforward concept where players battle head-to-head in raw outdoor basketball, using a single-elimination tournament bracket.

Games last five minutes and are subject to regulation hoops rules and scoring (two and three pointers). Players have to be tough to make it to the finals, but also have to play smart – five fouls equal an automatic loss.

After each game, the loser walks away, and the winner faces his next opponent. Tension and expectations are high.

With blood, sweat, tears, and hoops in the mix, the last King and Queen will be honored.

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova

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