Basketball: Mollie Campbell joins teammates ahead of Eurobasket preparations

Photo: Mark Ferriss

Mollie Campbell

Whitworth’s silver Commonwealth medallist Mollie Campbell and the Great Britain women’s basketball team are gearing up for a big summer as they host Canada at the National Basketball Performance Centre in Manchester on Wednesday 19 June (7.30pm tip-off).

The match will be the team’s only home match before they take their place among Europe’s elite at FIBA Women’s EuroBasket, from 27 June – 7 July.

Canada, the fifth best team in the world according to the FIBA Women’s World Rankings, will provide a stern test for the GB team ahead of EuroBasket.

Speaking about representing Great Britain, Mollie, centre for Leicester Riders, said: “I mean everybody dreams of it, don’t they? Representing your country is a massive honour so to be here is fantastic.”

Mollie, 23, was part of the basketball squad that won a silver medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia, and hopes to partake in the upcoming 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

• www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/4/sport-news/118003/basketball-whitworth-student-helps-england-women-win-silver-at-the-commonwealth-games

GB Head Coach Jose Maria Buceta said: “We’re looking forward to playing in front of our home fans ahead of a significant tournament for the team.

“With only the group winners progressing to EuroBasket through qualifying, our women reacted fantastically to the pressure and go into this summer full of confidence. Canada are one of the world’s top teams and we hope the fans really get behind the GB team and give them a fitting send-off ahead of a fantastic summer for not only them, but women’s sport in general.”

Buceta has already named the 17-woman squad for EuroBasket, which is made up of GB athletes who play across the world, with players representing clubs and colleges/universities from USA, Spain, Belgium, France, Poland, Italy and Great Britain.

The bi-annual tournament, this year hosted in Serbia and Latvia, sees 16 of Europe’s best teams compete for the crown, with the GB team being drawn in Group A alongside hosts Latvia, Ukraine and reigning champions Spain.