Senegal is forced to cancel its women’s basketball training camp in the United States after a number of its players were denied entry into the country. Their visas were rejected.
This decision was made more out of necessity than by choice.
The Sengalese women’s basketball national team was supposed to arrive to the United States earlier this week. It was going to hold a 10-day training camp from June 22 through July 3 to warm up for the 2025 Women’s AfroBasket tournament in Ivory Coast next month. Not anymore!
According to the West African nation’s federation, the visas of five players and seven coaches/staffers were not approved. Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko said that the team will instead train in Senegal’s capital, Dakar, “in a sovereign and conducive setting.”
Any preexisting visas were renewed but new applications were denied and it’s not entirely clear as to why. The current administration recently imposed a travel ban on twelve countries. Although the list does not include Senegal, AFP is reporting plans to expand this list to include 36 additional countries. That expansion will likely include Senegal.
However, the travel ban includes exemptions for the World Cup, the Olympics and any “other major sporting event.” It does not appear as though overseas training camp qualifies as a major sporting event.
Senegal’s women’s basketball team is one of the most dominant in Africa. It has finished either first or second in four of the last five AfroBasket championships with 11 titles in total. The tournament determines the continent champion, which earns a bid to the FIBA World Cup next summer.
Training camp will go on as scheduled for Senegal but it will instead take place domestically. There was no way to continue forth with the American trip without five players and seven coaches. The US State Department and its visa denials are to blame for the last-minute cancellation. The Senegalese women’s basketball team was forced to call an audible.