Basketball New Zealand

Tim Brown

As the Tall Ferns battled for a last-gasp entry into the Olympics last month, they weren’t the only Kiwis strutting their stuff at Ankara, Turkey.

New Zealand’s top-ranked referee, Tim Brown, was also adding to his growing international resumé, controlling five games, including a quarterfinal between France and Korea – the French won to grab one of the available spots in London – and a crucial semi-final playoff between Argentina and Canada for the fifth and final spot. Canada would win and go on to defeat Japan and claim the ticket to London.

Brown (34) had previously worked the 2010 FIBA World Championship for Women and the 2011 World University Games.

“This was definitely up there with those events,” he says. “Any time you get invited to a FIBA tournament of that nature, you treat it with quite a lot of respect.”

But while Brown obviously impressed enough to earn some important appointments during the week, his personal highlight was the encounter between Czech Republic and Argentina in the Ferns’ pool.

“It was a tough physical game, with both teams throwing everything into it – fantastic!”

But these tournaments aren’t all about the on-court action. They’re also a good chance for networking with other officials, catching up with the latest refereeing techniques and soaking in some of the local hospitality.

Turkish basketball fans are among the most passionate in the world and always go out of their way to make their events unforgettable.
“The Local Organising Committee was fantastic to us,” confirms Brown. “They organised a tour of Ankara to see some of the local history. Outside of that we spent most of our time relaxing and preparing mentally for the games that night”

Brown’s next assignment will be the up-coming Australian NBL season.

“I have to keep working hard to make sure I I stay on top of my game.”