Joe Apu
Mozambique women’s basketball star, Tamara Seda is dreaming big to secure a ticket to the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games and she and her mates are banking on a win over Nigeria to turn that dream into reality.
The Spain based center says that despite her team suffering a home defeat during the Pre-Olympic Qualifiers which Mozambique hosted, they are more determined to peck a win over Nigeria come February 6, 2020 in the opener of Group A of the Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament (WOQT) in Belgrade, Serbia.
Reigning Olympic champions USA and hosts Serbia complete the group, which Mozambique center Tamara Seda calls a “tough” one.
The three highest teams from the four WOQTs qualify for the Tokyo Games.
“We all know what Mozambique needs to do to be able to secure a ticket; and that is to win a game or two. We are excited about what’s coming up and are already working on it,” Seda revealed to FIBA.basketball.
“Nigeria is of course the reigning Africa champions and they have a very good team, and everybody expects them to win. So we have nothing to lose. [Group A] It is what it is. It would have been tough in any group,” Seda admitted.
Seda played a major role helping Mozambique to a Fourth-Place at FIBA Women’s AfroBasket 2019
But the Olympic dream – the chance of playing some of the best players on the biggest stage – is something that Seda and her teammates cannot hide even though Mozambique – at 43rd in the FIBA World Rankings – head to the Belgrade WOQT as the lowest-ranked team among in the entire tournament.