Nigeria women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, have threatened to boycott the 2022 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in Sydney, Australia, over an unpaid $100,000 allowance.
The embarrassing revelation was laid bare the basketballers in a viral video circulating social media.
WuzupNigeria reports that the development comes less than a month after they defeated Mali to lift the 2021 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket for a third consecutive time after a double victory over Senegal in the 2017 and 2019 finals.
The five-time African champions accused officials of the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development of holding back allowances worth $100,000 (N41.1million) donated by three banks to Nigeria’s women basketball team for their Tokyo 2020 Olympic participation.
According to one of the team members, the allowances being owed date back to 2018 and the issue, as well as, inadequate management and preparation hindered them from showing their best at the Tokyo Olympic Games where they failed to make it beyond the group stage.
“With all due respect to the association leadership, the Presidency, the Ministry and NBBF administration old and new, if these monies are not paid before the next qualifier of the next tournament in February 2022, FIBA World Cup, the entire D’Tigress team will not show up in camp. We are all saying this as one unit and one voice.”
Watch the video below:
