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On Friday we told you that President of the Belize Basketball Federation Paul Thompson and attorney Godfrey Smith left for Switzerland to argue for the nationality of 7 members of Belize’s national basketball team. Remember, FIBA ruled that 7 of the players who represented Belize at the COCABA Championship in Cancun were not eligible to play because they were born in the United States. So Belize’s silver medal was won under protest. Well that protest was heard this morning in Geneva Switzerland, when Thompson and Smith appeared before an appeals tribunal. The hearing lasted for two hours with Smith presenting Belize’s position and a German attorney appearing for FIBA. They appeared before a panel comprising a single Swiss jurist and the hearing was heard in English.

Smith told us that he is confident and for good reason: the judge nor the attorney for the other side never challenged the main assertion of the Belize Federation, and that is that all the players are considered Belizeans at birth even if they didn’t get their passports or step into the country until they were adults. We spoke to Smith in Geneva.

Godfrey Smith, Attorney for BBF
“We feel very good about how it went in the sense that first of all the questions that were asked of us were very few. We believe more questions were asked of the other side. We were not taken by surprise with any questions from the judge or from the other side and we also feel good because at the end of the arguments from FIBA, they basically, in our view, conceded that there was a lacuna, a hole in the regulations which did not cover the situation that arose in terms of Belize.”

Jules Vasquez,
“Beyond question was the point established that these players had citizenship as at the time of their birth wherever they were born? That was established?”

Godfrey Smith,
“That was established as well as the fact that when you examine the certificates of affirmation, for each player the affirmation of citizenship is effective at the date of birth or on independence day, putting all the players as having acquired citizenship well before they reach the age of 16. That point specifically was not rebutted by FIBA. They had no answer when we said to the Chairman look, look at the certificates of affirmation – this shows beyond doubt that the citizenship is effective on the birthday of these players.

I would place our prospect of success as being high. I say that based on my assessment of the demeanour and the behaviour of the judge, the kinds of questions he asked both sides, the ability of the other side to addressed what was our fundamental point about the constitution read along with the certificates.”

And while the proceedings were encouraging, you’ll have to cross your fingers for a while, possibly as long as four weeks – because that’s the time frame within which the judge has promised to give his ruling. Because of the straightforward appearance of the case, The Federation is hoping to get that ruling sometime before then.

If the Belize Federation wins, it will be vindicated and the decision to declare the players ineligible will be shown for the farce that it is. And what if Belize loses? Well, it doesn’t mean we have to give the medals back, at least not yet. At that point, a further appeal can be made to a higher body.