Five-time Olympic champion Deanna Taurasi was selected Sunday to be part of the U.S. national team that will compete in the pre-Olympic qualifying tournament this week in Belgium.
Taurasi is one of seven former Olympians on the roster. She will be joined by Arielle Atkins, Nafeesa Collier, Jewell Lloyd, Kelsey Plumb, Brianna Stewart and Jackie Young. Additionally, 2022 World Cup champion Carlea Copper, Sabrina Ionescu and Alyssa Thomas will also be part of the team.
Aliyah Boston and Ryne Howard round out the team. Both players will be making their senior national team debuts.
The squad for this summer’s Olympics may be different from the one playing in Belgium.
“We made that pretty clear,” said selection committee chair Jen Rizzotti. “Just because you go there doesn’t mean you’re going to be an Olympian.”
Former Olympians A’ja Wilson, Brittney Griner and Chelsea Gray were unable to play in Belgium this week. All three have a good chance of making the Olympic team.
The United States will play three games this week in Belgium, starting with Thursday’s game against the host team. More than 14,000 tickets have been sold for the game, and coach Sheryl Reeve expects a large crowd to cheer on the home team.
“We’re expected to go over there and be in a really tough environment,” the U.S. coach said Sunday at the end of a three-day training camp in New York. “We’ll have 14,000 people cheering us on. Once we open and the tournament starts, we’re obviously a really good team. We’re hoping to go through this adversity and use it to help prepare us for the next step.”
Reeve also feels the potential adversity will help the team prepare for the Paris Olympics, where the U.S. will seek its eighth consecutive Olympic title.
“It will probably shed light on what we need to do as a coaching staff. How can we utilize our players effectively? Those challenges are something we’re looking forward to,” she said. Told.
The U.S. team will also face Nigeria and Senegal in the same tournament. The top two teams in that pool, excluding the American team, will qualify for the Paris Games. Three other qualifying tournaments will be held simultaneously in Brazil, China and Hungary to confirm the 12-team Olympic berth. France has also already qualified as the host nation.
The U.S. team will hold another training camp for the Final Four in Cleveland in April, then reconvene in Phoenix for a few days just before the Olympics.
Rizzotti said there is no specific timetable for announcing the Olympic roster.
“We plan to continue with this Belgium trip and discuss April camp in late February and March,” she said. “April is our last chance to evaluate everyone.”
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-Paris-Olympic-Games