The 2006 Afghan Basketball Tournament was a great success, with over 800 people in attendance.  Held on Dec. 23 and 24 at San Diego Mesa College in San Diego, California, ARO volunteers raised approximately $3,640.00 for education and relief work.

Twenty men’s teams, five junior’s teams and two children’s teams competed in the two-day tournament.  Tournament participants traveled to San Diego from around the United States, including Virginia, New York, Tennessee, Florida, and Minnesota.  California participants were from Orange County, Los Angeles, Palm Springs, the Bay Area, and San Diego.  The Men’s Champions were the Afghan Basketball Club (ABC) and the Juniors’ Champions were the Jr. LA Dream Team (Jr. LADT).

ARO would like to express it’s appreciation to the Virginia team’s coach, David Ruskin, and the Ruskin / Zafren Foundation.  The Foundation sponsored the Virginia team’s trip to California, and made a generous donation to ARO.  Also, thank you to Mr. and Mrs. Nezam Etemadi for providing with tea and refreshments for our concession table at the tournament.

ARO volunteers enjoy participating at Afghan Basketball tournaments every year, which have raised thousands of dollars toward education and relief work in Afghanistan.  We express our appreciation to the world-class Afghan athletes, who make ARO a beneficiary of their tournaments.