Nigeria’s senior national women’s basketball team, D’Tigress captain Sarah Ogoke has disclosed that her withdrawal from the squad that will represent the country at the much anticipated 2024 Paris Olympics was not an easy decision, according to a report.
The global multi-sports showpiece is billed to get underway from July 26 till August 10.
It was reported that Ogoke’s name was not included in the initially 16-player squad released on Friday July 5 by the country’s apex basketball governing body- Nigeria Basketball Federation, NBBF.
In a bid to clear the air about her absence, Ogoke in a ‘X Space’ organised on Saturday July 6 by the NBBF, expressed remorse over her withdrawal, describing it as a tough decision in her career path.
She kept silent over the reason for her decision to withdraw, saying that it’s a personal issues.
“It was not an easy situation or decisión but an agreement that for now I have to take a back seat for personal reasons. It is unfortunate, but I think this is the way God wants it,” Ogoke said.
“I know my fans are not really happy. I just want them to just focus and support the team.”
Ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, she expressed optimism, saying the squad has the strength to get to the knockout stages.
“We have a great leader under coach Rena. I want the attention to be on the girls.We have amazing opportunities at the Olympics. We are in the same group with Australia, France and Canada. It is not like the group of death we had at the last Olympics,” Ogoke remarked.
Olaitan Ibrahim