NIGERIA: Coach of Nigeria’s female basketball team, Rena Wakama has spoken of how they prepared for the African Basketball tournament for only six days, saying that more preparation was now needed for the team to soar to global glory.
GWG.ng reports that she spoke following the continental success when the team clinched the Female African Basketball tournament for the fifth consecutive time.
Speaking late on Monday in an interview just before dashing off to a party to celebrate their victory, Rena Wakama said that the players all professionals in their various endeavours put their backs to the wall to prepare for the tournament.
Rena Wakama spoke in an interview on Arise News Television monitored by GWG.ng
Asked on her feeling, she gushed “It’s been amazing. There is no place like home. So, we are all happy, we are all overjoyed with the love and support from the government, from the city of Abuja and even here. We are so happy to be home.”
Bringing forth her faith in God in the final moments of the last match, Rena Wakama said:
“I was moved, my emotions were moved, I was just looking up to God because is only Him that has taken me thus far.
“This is not enough, we are hungry, we are determined to make another push on the big world stage.”
Asked on the challenges the team faced ahead of the tournament, Rena Wakama, said:
“Preparation! We lacked enough time for preparation. We only had five or six days to prepare whereas other teams were in camp for weeks. So, preparation is key! I grew up with the 5Ps in life: Prior Preparation Prevents Poor Performance.”
“In order for us to continue to achieve at the high level we have to put in the funds, the efforts, the resources and the support for us to properly prepare. These ladies did something that was unheard of. They are all professionals in their own walks of life, but let us not take that for granted. We had to come together with our backs against the wall to still perform and we did,” Rena Wakama said.
