Sources: Nneka Ogwumike, Chiney Ogwumike, Elizabeth Williams file appeal to FIBA
7:54 PM ET Ramona Shelburne ESPN Senior Writer
Nneka Ogwumike, Chiney Ogwumike and Elizabeth Williams have sent a letter to the secretary general of FIBA, challenging the organization's rulings on their applications to play for the Nigerian national team at the upcoming Tokyo Olympics, sources told ESPN on Thursday.
If FIBA doesn't grant their appeal, all three plan to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, sources said. A final roster for the Tokyo Games is due by Sunday.
The appeal argues that the secretary general should've factored in whether their addition would be "in the interest of the development of basketball" in Nigeria as per Article 3-22 of the FIBA Internal Regulations.
"Unequivocally, this is the case for a country currently ranked 17th in the FIBA World Rankings," the appeal argues. "A strong finish by the Nigeria women's basketball team at the Olympic Games would undoubtedly be in the interest of the development of basketball in Nigeria."
Nneka Ogwumike's and Williams' transfer requests were denied because of their "significant involvement" for more than 10 years with USA Basketball. Generally, if players have competed for the United States in FIBA-sanctioned events after having reached their 17th birthday, they are not allowed to play for another country in a FIBA event. However, according to FIBA's regulations on player eligibility, the organization's secretary general may authorize a player to compete for the national team of his or her country of origin if this is in the interest of the growth of basketball in that country.
The appeal also notes that all three players have been Nigerian citizens since birth "by virtue of being born to Nigerian citizens while abroad."
This is significant, because Chiney Ogwumike was cleared to play for Nigeria as a naturalized citizen, and there can be only one naturalized citizen per roster. Essentially, if Chiney's status isn't changed to full citizenship, like her younger sister Erica, it could potentially affect the ability to add Nneka and Williams if they are subsequently cleared and given a similar status as naturalized citizens.
"They are Nigerian," the appeal reads. "They have family and friends in Nigeria. Their parents are Nigerian. They are just as much at home in Nigeria as they are when they are in the USA ... and would be invaluable assets to Team Nigeria, and would help grow the sport of basketball in Nigeria for years to come."
FIBA has a long history of clearing American players who became naturalized citizens of other countries: Becky Hammon and Epiphanny Prince for Russia, Courtney Vandersloot for Hungary, and Gabby Williams and Bria Hartley with France.
The players' attorney, Howard Jacobs, successfully represented Diana Taurasi in her doping case against the Turkish Federation in 2011.
I knew that Erica would be cleared because she has not played for the US and she has always said that she wants to play for Nigeria. She has been in the Nigerian training campfor the past few days and she made this video with other members of D'Tigress.
Chiney has won gold with the US at the World Under-18 Championships, the World University Games and the 2012 3X3 World Championships.
Nneka Ogwumika was a star player for the US team at the World Under-18 Championship. She also won gold with the Under 19 team and she played in 2 senior World Cups (2014 and 2018) with the US team. (Nneka was also the 2012 WNBA rookie of the year and she was also the 2016 WNBA MVP).
She was in contention for selection for the US team to the Tokyo Olympics, but she was not selected, probably because she had just returned from long term injury. Some people say that the non-selection of Nneka Ogwumike into the US Olympic team is one of the biggest snubs in US women's basketball.
Throwback to 2015. The Best of Both Worlds by Chiney Ogwumike.
"I am Nigerian-American".
She said when she says that she's Nigerian-American, some Americans are confused. They say, "Doesn't that mean that you are black? African-American?" (She says that, even though she is black, but she doesn't consider herself to be African-American because her heritage and experience is different).
She said that when she goes home to Nigeria there's usually a period when she has to break the ice. Some Nigerians say that she is American and she's like, "I am as Nigerian as you", but after a few days they realise that she's just as passionate about Nigeria as anyone else.
The founder of Econet Wireless, Strive Masiyiwa, had a pan-African TV company called Kwese TV which operated from 2015 till 2019. Kwese Sports had a partnership deal with ESPN and they were able to take over the NBA and ESPN rights from DSTV.
Chiney Ogwumike works for ESPN and for that period she was Kwese TV's Nigerian basketball correspondent. I made these posts around that time (2015-2019).
Watching Chiney Ogwumike interview Nigerians that have been picked in the 2017 NBA draft reminds me of an interview that Victor Ubogu gave to the BBC around 15 years ago.
The BBC wanted to find out why rugby wasn't so big in Nigeria, despite the fact that there are so many great Nigerian rugby players. However, what caught my attention was when he said that whenever he scores a try, he looks at another Nigerian player in his team and they both shout, "Eba!"
naptu2: Kwese are milking their partnerships with ESPN and DBN. They've done several specials on the Ogwumike sisters and Victor Oladipo and now they are doing one on Osi Umenyiora
naptu2: I just typed Chinney Ogwumike and that reminded me that I have not created my post about Kwese Sports.
Chinney was their Nigerians in America/Africans in America NBA correspondent (despite the fact that she's still a player and also despite the fact that she plays for the USA).
2017 NBA-Africa game.(Victor Oladipo also played for the USA)
naptu2: Team world won the NBA Africa game, defeating Team Africa 108-97. Victor Oladipo led Africa with 28 points and he was also named the MVP of the game (at times it looked like he was trying to win the game on his own. He was so fired up).
Afterwards Victor Oladipo told Chinenye Ogwumike (of the Connecticut Sun), "Representing Nigeria is very important to me. Everybody knows I bleed green-white-green and everybody knows that Nigerians have the best jollof rice."
naptu2: "Representing Nigeria is very important to me. Everybody knows I bleed green-white-green and everybody knows that Nigerians have the best jollof rice."
Chiney Ogwumike is a Nigerian-American basketballer and radio/TV presenter. She has represented the US at junior level and won gold with them at the World University Games and at Under 19 level. She has also represented them at the World 3x3 championships.
She was ESPN's Nigeria presenter for a long time and she has often reported about Nigerians in the NBA and WNBA. She once presented a show about her life that explained how she did her internship in Abuja, how she enjoys Nigerian culture, etc. She's also the first black woman to present a national radio show for ESPN.
I'll emphasise again, she works for ESPN, the same media company that Stephen A. Smith works for. This was her response to Mr Smith's comments.
Chiney Ogwumike @chiney
As someone who has seen Mr. Smith’s daily grind, I have so much respect for my ESPN fam... But as a proud Nigerian-American, whose name gets mispronounced daily, we HAVE to do better. Chinenye means God gives. Our names have beautiful meaning & should be celebrated!
90% of people that responded agreed with her, but a few Nigerians attacked her for changing her name from Chinenye to Chiney, while a few foreigners took Mr Smith's side.
Meanwhile, everybody is still monitoring the situation with the Ogwumike sisters. Erica, the youngest of the sisters, was the first to declare her intention to play for Nigeria. She's currently at the D'Tigress training camp and she has the best shot (of the three sisters) at playing for Nigeria.
Nneka Ogwumike, the eldest of the sisters, has won two World Cups with the USA, but she has been cut from the US Olympic team. Many Nigerians have been calling for her to play for Nigeria for years. She's the biggest star of the three sisters. She has also been included in the Nigerian provisional list for the Olympics, but they are awaiting FIBA approval. The US has agreed to her decision to play for Nigeria, but will FIBA agree? Remember, she has won two World Cups for the US.
Erica Ogwumike: ''It's simply been a dream of mine to compete for Nigeria''
HOUSTON (USA) - Erica, the youngest of the renowned Ogwumike sisters, wants to represent Nigeria instead of the USA like her older sisters - Nneka and Chiney.
The 22-year old, who was recently selected by the New York Liberty in the WNBA 2020 Draft as the 26th pick and traded to the Minnesota Lynx, is excited about the possibility of suiting up for D'Tigress who are currently the best team in Africa after winning two back-to-back FIBA Women's AfroBasket titles and have already booked a place to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
"I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO CREATE MY OWN PATH SEPARATE FROM MY SISTERS FROM SCHOOL, SPORTS, TO SIMPLY LIFE AND THIS IS JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE. IT'S SIMPLY BEEN A DREAM OF MINE TO COMPETE FOR NIGERIA IN THE OLYMPICS SOME DAY. I THINK MANY WERE SURPRISED, HOWEVER, I SIMPLY HAD NEVER BEEN ASKED THE QUESTION BEFORE IN AN INTERVIEW. HAHA.
- Erica
Erica, who is the only guard in a family of forwards including Nneka, Chiney and Olivia, is on a path to step away from the shadow of her sisters while also continuing to look up to them for inspiration.
She spoke to FIBA.basketball in an exclusive interview, "I just want to compete. Whether that means making the team or not. I think it would be an awesome experience to just compete with the great women on the Nigerian national team. I’ve only competed for universities and organizations so I can only imagine the pride and energy that’s felt when you compete for an entire country. It would be amazing to experience."
Asked when she made the decision to play for D'Tigress, she said, "Probably half way through college when I began to see my sister competing internationally. Being Nigerian-American my parents have always kept us close with our culture and where we came from so it not only seemed like a fun opportunity but also one I hold with the utmost respect and honor to be able to do so if possible."
"It’s been hard being in college and playing basketball to visit as much now but growing up we went to Nigeria frequently. I consistently love my Nigerian music, Burna Boy is my favorite artist, and of course we eat Nigerian food. Growing up in the USA never put a hindrance on our Nigerian culture because our parents did an excellent job continuing to educate us and keep us aware. Also we have lived in Houston, Texas our whole life which has a massive Nigerian population, thus events, people and more."
Nigeria already has a couple of players that were born and raised in the USA like the reigning FIBA Women's AfroBasket MVP Ezinne Kalu, Captain Adaora Elonu, Atonye Nyingifa and Sarah Ogoke among others - something that is exciting for Erica.
"Yeah, of course there is commonality in how we all grew up and I think because of that I can relate to them for sure. I hope so at least."
"As many now know, we aren’t comparing why, it’s just what I feel is best for me. Nneka, my sister, has worked hard to compete in the next upcoming Olympics and I will be the first one cheering her on in her pursuit. She honestly is what motivated me to want to do the same. We are all happy and support each other."
Nigeria and USA were in the same FIBA Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade, Serbia with D'Tigress leading for three quarters before the USA grabbed a 76-71 victory over the African champions. Nevertheless the latter booked a place in Tokyo.
Erica explained that, "I have been able to create my own path separate from my sisters from school, sports, to simply life and this is just another example. It's simply life and this just another example. It's simply been a dream of mine to compete for Nigeria in the Olympics some day. I think many were surprised, however, I simply had never been asked the question before in an interview. Haha."
Erica is currently completing an Anatomy Class "just for fun" that she enrolled for at Rice University where she graduated last year. This is one of many decisions to show that she indeed chose to take a different path than her sisters who attended Stanford University.
Playing basketball and studying medicine has not exactly been a walk in the park for Erica but hers is a story of determination and hard work that have spelled her journey thus far.
"It was hard but doable. I just had to become an excellent time manager, communicator, and had to find a balance of pursuing excellence in both. Once I was able to do that, the sky was the limit for me."
Indeed nothing will stop a determined Erica who continues to shape her own story and curve it out of the opportunities presented to her. With the Minnesota Lynx, not even the sky will be the limit for her.
"They’re an excellent team. Great culture, very decorated so it’s an honor to be in this program where I am surrounded by basketball legends and experts each day. Very humbled and grateful to learn from them."
"I’m very excited and grateful for this opportunity, to be drafted, to be in the WNBA. I’ve always seen it as an option in my life but I didn’t really know it would happen until earlier this year. However, I am glad I put in the hard work and effort to allow myself to be in this position."
Should Nigeria coach Otis Hughley Jr select Erica to play for Nigeria, she will be joining Ogoke in the line of doctors playing at this level.
After playing for Team USA and you stopped getting call up, you now remember that Nigeria is your country abi Abeg other Nigerians will be invited to play for us
The tragedy here is that circumstances are forcing these incredibly beautiful sisters of mine to fight in order to represent a country of criminal politicians, genocidal tyrants and repulsive tribal murderers..... When they could easily have represented their land of immense opportunities and drive, the land of hope and black emancipation; Biafra!
I don’t think they should be allowed to compete for Nigeria, let others who are eligible be given the opportunity and exposure please. If she’d (Nenka) been selected by US would she have considered Nigeria? Let’s be objective here. They wanna use and dump us
Let FIBA reject their Appeal... This girls came to play for Nigeria after not been giving a chance in the US national team, we are not a dumping ground.. their Appeal should be rejected let them loose out on both sides.. Next time, any country you want to play for, you would remain with them through out with your full chest.. Even the males, they came to Nigeria team cos the Dont have a chance with the US.. Bam Adebayo that have a chance with US no even send us... Even Giannis antetekumpo (adetokunbo) he represents gree proudly.. No pity for them girls.. Let their Olympics dreams be dashed.. other upcoming ones would learn ..
PAWG: I don’t think they should be allowed to compete for Nigeria, let others who are eligible be given the opportunity please. If she’d been selected by US would she have considered Nigeria? Let’s be objective here. They wanna use and dump us
God bless you my Gee.. Just check my post after yours and see my take on it.. They are Rushing us cos Dem no get chance for US team.. Nonsense..
