Members of the Senegal women's national basketball team have returned to the court in central Dakar, where they spent their first morning of practice drilling technique inside the Marius Ndiaye arena. The sessions were due to take place in the United States this week but were shifted to Senegal at short notice, after the US rejected visas for 12 of Les Lionnes' players and staff.
The timing has drawn attention. The refusals emerged days after Senegal appeared on a list of countries the US is considering adding to a travel ban. Captain Yacine Diop told reporters at the Dakar practice that the matter was ultimately out of the team's hands, while assistant coach Madiene Fall was more matter-of-fact: "It didn't work out. We're here today, and we have to deal with it."
Fall pointed to past results, noting the team's silver medal at the 2023 AfroBasket in Kigali after training in Senegal, and insisted the players' success was not contingent on practice location. Diop added that the 10-day window was short enough that "it doesn't matter if we go to the US or we stay here."
Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko cancelled the team's participation in the US training shortly after the visa rejections were reported, praising Beijing in his announcement. Local newspaper Sud Quotidien ran the headline "Sonko 'dunks' Washington and lauds Beijing" the next day. The US Embassy did not respond to requests for comment on the visa decisions, while the State Department said it was unable to discuss individual cases.
The women are preparing for women's AfroBasket 2025 in Ivory Coast next month. Les Lionnes have finished first or second in eight of the last 10 editions of the tournament.
