South Africa have named the 12 players that will compete at the 2019 Women’s U25 World Championship in Thailand, between the 23rd– 28th May.
With the team’s average age being just 19 years, South Africa’s Head Coach, Nthombizile Nthombeni brings a young and emerging team to the forthcoming championship in Thailand. Three of the selected players represented South Africa’s senior women’s team in the 2017 Africa Championships and bring valuable experience into the composition of this team.
South Africa participated in the first ever Women’s U25 World Championship, which took place in St Catharines, Canada in 2011.
South Africa’s High-Performance Manager, Gerry Smith, said “Our girls are very excited to have the opportunity to travel to Thailand to take on the world’s best teams. Many of our girls have never been on a plane before let alone leave South Africa, so there is great excitement in the team.
“The girls are however under no illusion that it will be very tough for them as we have players in the team that have only been playing for a short while. For us though it won’t be about winning games but more about the upliftment and development of our ladies. We hope that the ladies learn a lot from this experience as we have identified this group as the core group to help us qualify for Paris 2024.”
SOUTH AFRICA’S U25 ROSTER
| Aviwe Ngoni | 1.0 | 2001 |
| Samkelisiwe Mbatha | 1.5 | 2001 |
| Tshwanelo Moabi | 1.5 | 2000 |
| Lungile Ndlela | 2.5 | 1996 |
| Emihle Mbotho | 3.5 | 2002 |
| Nolitha Kibido | 3.5 | 2000 |
| Ongezwa Hagu | 4.0 | 1999 |
| Nokuthula Yonke | 3.5 | 2001 |
| Asive Gilifile | 4.0 | 1999 |
| Nokwanda Hlongwane | 4.5 | 1998 |
| Duduzile Mceleni | 4.5 | 1998 |
| Simphiwe Manqele | 4.5 | 1998 |
Team Staff
Nthombizile Nthombeni – Head Coach
James Mthethwa – Assistant Coach
Gerhard Smith – Team Manager
Kate Douglas – Sport Massage
Wiseman Dlamini – Second Assistant Coach
Charles Saunders – Chef D’mission
Words and Image Courtesy of Wheelchair Basketball South Africa
