ABUJA (Nigeria) - As we look at the major events that shaped African basketball in 2024, we bring you the story of the history makers, Nigeria's D'Tigresses.
If we invest in Africa we are capable of doing really amazing things. We have to put some eyes on Africa and develop the game there and it starts with grassroots - Nigeria head coach Rena Wakama
Most of the Nigerian players who flew their country's flag at the 2024 Olympic Women's Basketball Tournament were toddlers when Zaire (DR Congo) became the first African country to participate in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, USA.
Apart from the Congolese, four other African countries, including Senegal (2000 and 2016), Nigeria (2004, 2020 and 2024), Mali (2008) and Angola (2012) have represented the continent at the Olympics, with modest results.
But when a group of Nigerian players led by Rena Wakama travelled to Paris for the 2024 Olympics, there was only one goal in mind and history was made.
2024 will go down in the books as the year Nigeria rewrote the history of women's basketball in Africa.
Apart from Nigeria's 1-5 record at the 2004 Athens Olympics, no other African team had ever won a game in the history of the tournament, with a win-loss record of 1-36 dating back to 1996.
But Paris 2024 belonged to Nigeria's D'Tigresses.
The four-time defending Women's AfroBasket champions opened the 2024 Olympics with a 75-62 win over world number two Australia, they put up a fight against hosts France before losing 75-54.
However, it was Nigeria's 79-70 victory over Canada, a top-10 team in the FIBA World Ranking, that changed the history of women's basketball in Africa as they advanced to the quarter-finals.
By reaching the quarter-finals of the Olympic Games, where they were beaten by eventual champions USA, Nigeria became the first African team (men or women) to ever reach this stage.
Coach Rena Wakama said at the time: "If we invest in Africa we are capable of doing really amazing things. We have to put some eyes on Africa and develop the game there and it starts with grassroots. it will make the game so much better."
Inspired by head coach Rena Wakama, who was just two years old when DR Congo became the first African country to represent the continent at the Olympics 28 years ago, Nigeria eventually climbed to 9th in the current FIBA World Ranking, and closed the year at No.8
And what better way to crown their campaign in Paris than to Rena Wakama winning the 2024 Paris Olympics head coach of the tournament.
FIBA