Belgium has announced its intention to host a women’s basketball qualifying tournament for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
After securing a victory at the European Championships in Slovenia on 25 June, Belgium also cemented their place in the pre-Olympic tournaments.
The plan is now to host one of the four qualifying events at Antwerp’s Lotto Arena, a venue boasting a 5,300-seat capacity, on 8-11 February next year. This was confirmed on Friday by the General Manager of the “Belgian Cats”, Koen Umans.
Contenders eyeing the Olympic Games
The tournaments will consist of four groups of four teams, with the top three from each advancing to the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Despite their automatic qualification, the USA, reigning World Champions, and France, the Olympic host country, will also participate. The two highest ranking teams in their group will secure additional Olympic spots.
The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) is expected to reveal its decision by September 9. Teams participating in the European qualifiers include Belgium, the first-time winners of the European Championships, Spain, Hungary, Serbia, and Germany.
The Asian qualifiers include the Asia Championship victors, China, the finalists, Japan, Australia who clinched third place, and New Zealand, the fourth-placed team.
Belgium’s hosting history includes a pre-Olympic tournament for the Tokyo Games in Ostend in February 2020. The Belgian Cats successfully qualified then in front of an enthusiastic crowd of nearly 6,000 spectators, and later finished seventh at the Tokyo Olympics.
