South Sudan caused a sensation last week when it came close (by one point) to bringing down the United States…
To form the team, the president of the Federation, Luol Deng, called on players from the diaspora who had left the country during the second Sudanese civil war. This was the case of Wenyen Gabriel, who spoke passionately about what it meant to play for South Sudan.
A former NBA player was hoping to fill the ranks of South Sudan for the 2024 Olympic Games. He is the 10th pick in the 2016 Draft, Tuna Maker. Except that the latter has already represented Australia previously…
A procedure too late
And the player himself announced that his application to FIBA had finally been rejected. Thon Maker will therefore not be able to participate in the Paris Olympic Games with the country in which he was born.
“It's a sad day,” he wrote on social networks. “I started this process on April 5th and unfortunately my clearance letter from the Australian federation arrived too late for FIBA protocol.”
We won't see the former Bucks player in the South Sudan jersey right away. However, Thon Maker hopes to join the group for future events.
“It was decided that the request from the Federation of South Sudan came too late,” he continues. “The appeal is still ongoing but with no chance for these Olympic Games. I am disappointed but my goal remains to play in future competitions. Good luck to South Sudan, my heart is with you.”
South Sudan will play their first match of the competition this Sunday, against Puerto Rico, at 11am. They will then meet Team USA, then Serbia in the final group match.
