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Jun 9th 2016

NEW Official Basketball Design to be Featured at the 2016 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments

Molten Corporation (Headquarters: Nishi-­ku, Hiroshima City, Japan;; President and CEO: Kiyofumi Tamiaki), one of the leading manufacturers of competition quality sports balls and equipment, will provide the official game ball for the men’s and women’s FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments this summer. The official game ball will be Molten’s BGL7X/BGL6X leather basketball and will feature a vibrant new design.

The FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments will be the last opportunity for selected national teams to qualify for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and will be host to many of the world’s most talented basketball players. The FIBA Approved Special Edition design will adorn the official ball. The expressive design reflects the movement and agility of the most elite players in the world, and will add excitement to the game for players and spectators alike.

FIBA President Horacio Muratore/FIBA Secretary General and International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Patrick Baumann said: “We are very excited to present these unique basketballs that will be used by the world’s best players and best teams at our biggest events of 2016. We are extremely grateful to Molten -­ with whom we’ve enjoyed a tremendous relationship for more than 30 years -­ for helping us develop these products.”

“Molten is committed to developing the best sports equipment for FIBA and the larger basketball community. We are looking forward to being a part of these world-­class competitions.” said President and CEO of Molten Corporation, Kiyofumi Tamiaki.

By combining function and design, Molten believes that the FIBA Special Edition Basketball aligns with the Molten brand statement, “For the real game.”


■Product Features

1. FIBA Special Design

Green, yellow, blue and white unite to form this unique and vibrant design.

306ea104dfa46c18e93ce7bb9247e0ce.png


2. Consistent Touch

To improve consistency of touch, the shape and placement of each pebble was modified and aligned to create a uniform surface texture, modifying the traditional pebble pattern.


Traditional pebble placement | Uniform pebble alignment 

3. Enhanced Visibility

Increased contrast between the ball’s feature colors provides the ultimate experience in ball visibility. Players can focus on every movement of the ball. Additionally, the rotation of the ball can be seen at greater distances, allowing fans to see every detail of play.                                                                                                             

BGL7                   BGL7X

■Product Overview

Official Game Ball Replica
Item Number BGL7X-YG BGL6X-YG BGM7X-YG BGM6X-YG BGR7-YG BGR6-YG
Size Size7 Size6 Size7 Size6 Size7 Size6
Cover Material Genuine leather Composite leather Rubber
Official Approval FIBA official approved ball FIBA official approved ball FIBA official approved ball
Country of Origin Thailand Thailand Thailand

Official Ball of FIBA and 2016 Tournaments

As a global sponsor of FIBA, Molten has been their official game ball supplier since 1982 and Molten’s top leather basketballs have served as the official game ball for numerous international tournaments, competitions and associations across the globe. The newly designed BGL7X and BGL6X will be used as the official basketballs in international FIBA competitions in 2016 including the following:

Ÿ FIBA Men’s Olympic Qualifying Tournaments (Monday, July 4th – Sunday, July 10th) will utilize the BGL7X-­YG

Ÿ FIBA Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament (Monday, June 13th – Sunday, June 19th) will utilize the BGL6X-­YG

■ Social Media

Molten and FIBA will provide an interactive experience for global basketball fans during the Olympic Qualifying Tournaments via FIBA.com and FIBA’s social platforms including Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Chinese social media platform, Sina Weibo. FIBA social followers will have the opportunity to win special edition basketballs during several different initiatives and contests leading up to the event.

■ Product image data (JPEG) is also available

Contact: Ryo Kurahashi

International Market Sales & Marketing Department

Sports Division

Molten Corporation

Tel: (+81-­3)3625-­7648

Fax: (+81-­3)3625-­7738

Shop the 2016 Special Edition Pre-Sale Now: BGL7X-YGBGM7X-YG