USA Women’s Basketball team all set for their first game after final SportsDock practice
Friday 27 July 2012
Team USA‘s women’s basketball team are ready to take on the world following their first pre-match training session today at the University of East London’s SportsDock.
The team spent the morning ‘reviewing some plays’ ahead of their first game of the London 2012 Olympics against Croatia tomorrow afternoon.
They will make for a pretty fearsome opponent when they take to the court. Women's basketball became a medal sport at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, since which time, the team has earned six gold medals, winning Gold in every Games bar one, since 1984.
The current team have no plans to buck that trend having claimed four wins in three different countries in exhibition play since the line-up was first announced less than two weeks ago.
Forward, Maya Moore, at 23 the youngest player on the team, said: “We’re excited, the Games are finally here and we’re ready to go! We’ve been anticipating the Olympics for so long, we’re just anxious to get on the court.”
On SportsDock, the University’s flagship sports facility, she said: “It’s beautiful; I love the clean, fresh feel. There’s a lot of space everywhere and it’s just really cool to come into a building and feel comfortable where you’re playing and working out and competing.”
She added: “Having access to something like this is huge for a community, I know as a kid I loved going down to my local ‘rec centre’. Playing organised sport really changes the culture of a neighbourhood.”
“I couldn’t imagine my childhood without having sports around and having teams and making friends and having somewhere to go where I feel like I belong, and this is a great place to do it. Take advantage of this place and I promise that you won’t regret it.”
Notes to Editors
The University of East London (UEL) is a global learning community with over 28,000 students from over 120 countries world-wide. Our vision is to achieve recognition, both nationally and internationally, as a successful and inclusive regional university proud of its diversity, committed to new modes of learning which focus on students and enhance their employability, and renowned for our contribution to social, cultural and economic development, especially through our research and scholarship. We have a strong track-record in widening participation and working with industry.
