BEIRUT/MIES (Lebanon/Switzerland) - FIBA has announced that the FIBA Regional Office Asia will welcome new leadership, while the regional headquarters will relocate to Kuala Lumpur, from Beirut, as of January 2027.
The move implements the decision taken by the FIBA Central Board and the FIBA Asia Zone Board during their respective most recent sessions, for the Regional Office to operate again from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The relocation of FIBA Asia to its original regional headquarters, in a well-connected and strategically located city that serves as a hub for international sports organizations such as the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the World Badminton Federation (WBF), will coincide with the scheduled retirement of Hagop Khajirian from the role of FIBA Executive Director Asia at the end of the year.
Wasim Khan MBE, an acclaimed British-Pakistani sports administrator, will succeed Mr. Khajirian as FIBA Executive Director Asia in January 2027.
Following his professional cricket career in the United Kingdom, Mr. Khan brings extensive experience, having operated across grassroots development and high performance. He served as Chief Executive of a youth cricket charity (Chance to Shine), of a professional club (Leicestershire County Cricket Club), and of a world leading National Federation from Asia (Pakistan Cricket Board), and most recently as General Manager of an International Federation based in Asia (International Cricket Council - ICC).
To ensure a seamless transition, Mr. Khan has already commenced working with FIBA as Executive Director-designate and is undertaking a comprehensive handover with Mr. Khajirian ahead of formally assuming the role of Executive Director in January 2027.
Mr. Khajirian, a Lebanese former basketball player and national team coach, has served Asian basketball in leadership roles for almost 30 years, first as Secretary General of the West Asia Basketball Association (1998-2002), then as FIBA Asia Deputy Secretary General (2002-2011) and since 2012 as the Secretary General / Executive Director for the Asia Region.
During his tenure, the FIBA Regional Office Asia has modernised itself and become an efficient and operationally strong entity, delivering top-tier events with unprecedented growth such as the most recent FIBA Asia Cups in Saudi Arabia (men) and China (women), the first-ever home-and-away Qualifiers across multiple windows and a new pyramid of international club competitions in Asia with the launch of the WASL, the BCL Asia, the BCL Asia-East for men and the WBLA for women. Mr. Khajirian will transition to the role of Senior Advisor to the FIBA Secretary General at the end of the year.
The relocation of the Regional Office to Kuala Lumpur and the appointment of new executive leadership reinforce FIBA's long-term commitment to strengthening basketball across one of the world's most dynamic and rapidly developing regions.
FIBA