Nigeria’s senior women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, will aim to end their barren run with a first win at the Paris 2024 Olympics since they defeated South Korea 68-64 in the classification game of Athens 2004.
D’Tigress started competing in the Olympics in 2004. In that edition, they suffered losses in all five of their group matches against Australia, Japan, Greece, Brazil, and Russia. Still, they managed to win one against South Korea to become the first African team to triumph in a match at the global multi-sport showcase.
The victory against South Korea placed D’Tigress eleventh in the world ranking.
At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, sixteen years after making their Olympic debut, D’Tigress returned to competition, losing all the group’s matches to the USA, France, and Japan to finish eleventh in the world ranking.
They failed to get beyond the group stages at both editions.
Ahead of their encounter against Australia’s Opals in their Paris 2024 Olympic Women’s Basketball Tournament Group B opener today (Monday), the Rena Wakama-trained team aims to secure their first Olympic win in 20 years.
The team boasts Amy Okonkwo, Ezinne Kalu, Elizabeth Balogun, Promise Amukamara, Pallas Kunayi, and Blessing Ejiofor. Others include Olaoluwatomi Taiwo, Lauren Ebo, Adebola Adeyeye, Nicole Enabosi, Murjanatu Musa, and Ifunaya Okoro.
D’Tigress, ranked 12th, will face a tough challenge in Group B, which includes powerhouse teams such as Australia, Canada, and host nation France—all ranked in the top 7 of the FIBA world rankings.
